Three's A Crowd
by river of the sand
Summary: SasuSaku. He didn't mean to kill that man. He had simply reacted to being attacked. And now Konoha is forced to hunt down the rogue members of Team 7, or risk open war. Eventual NaruHina.
1. Moving On

**Author's Notes: I know, ANOTHER STORY! But I couldn't help myself. I love this story very much and I really wanted to post it.  
>Obviously, this is not along the canon storyline, but I won't bother explaining what the differences are. You'll figure them out soon enough. But there are some factors that are more important than others, so when they crop up, I'll let you know. But yes, Naruto still has the Kyuubi.<strong>

**Any yes, I'm aware that Kitsúne means "fox". I like the word, so I used it here.  
>Read, love, and review! :)<strong>

Chapter One. Moving On.

Sakura Haruno. That was the name her parents had given her. They were lost amongst a sea of civilians and ninja alike who had died when Konoha was levelled and left masses of orphaned children in their wake. Sakura and her two team mates, Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha were amongst those who had no-one left, and decided to abandon Konoha.

Of course, Team 7, minus their teacher Kakashi Hatake, had been the only ones to actually leave. They spent years on the road, doing odd jobs to survive, while honing their ninja skills. They had even stolen jutsu from countries that despised their own, but their ultimate goal was just to keep moving, and find the one who had killed their respective families.

Revenge, yes _that_ was it. No-one inside of Konoha, who had been left standing anyway, had wanted to actively search for that _fiend_.

It had been six years since they'd set off together, and Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto were now nineteen years old. They didn't trust anyone but each other, and even though Naruto had a bad habit of sleeping with disreputable women in dingy hotel rooms, they were only comfortable around each other.

_No_, Sakura was not the cream filling in some sort of sex trio, although Naruto _had_ suggested he and Sasuke fuck her from both ends one night when he'd had too much sake. She'd _violently_ motivated him never to suggest that again! That said, she had knocked him unconscious mostly to cover her own embarrassment. While she knew she'd never act on it, the idea of sleeping with Naruto had had her slightly intrigued. She was _not_ a cream filling!

Sakura fumed at the memory, staring out over the picturesque view before her. She was standing outside a tea shop, only an hour outside of the small village she had spent the last few days scouring. It was called Gakutsuna town, and was home to low life reprobates. This land was abundant with them. The Land of Rice Paddies they called it. Sakura called it _Freakville_.

A loud crash coming from within the shop did not bother her. It was just routine after all. The owner of this shop had information they needed and was being stubborn. He just needed a little _persuasion_. Sakura smiled at that, imagining that that intimidating Uchiha stare as well as Naruto's brusque interrogation "techniques" were scaring that old coot. And normally she'd be in there, doing the whole fisticuffs thing she liked so much, but the owner was a seventy year old _pervert_ and Sasuke had asked her to leave when she'd tried to kill him for asking her for sex. They needed him _alive_ to talk.

Sakura shivered involuntarily. Yeah, she was happier out _here_.

Still, she was _bored_, staring out over this valley, wondering how much longer her boys were going to _play_ for. They needed this information yes, but they also _needed_ to be out of this valley by night fall. Rumour had it that leaf ninja were coming this way tonight. Sakura remembered Konoha fondly, but had no desire to run into old friends or even complete strangers when she was a missing-nin who had to be captured or killed on sight. Whoever these leaf ninja were, their mission had nothing to do with Kitsúne.

Kitsúne was the name Konoha knew them by, but as far as Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto knew, they didn't know what they looked like, let alone who they _really_ were. That notorious S-Rank bingo book was only filled out by the _living_, and they weren't in it. Of course, when it came to people they didn't need to kill Sakura was very good at making them forget. A little Genjutsu went a long way. She was a natural with that particular type of jutsu.

Sasuke and Naruto exited the tea shop ten minutes later, in an orderly fashion. Naruto then ruined the image by poking tongue at Sakura and pulling down the bottom of his eye lid in mock. She glared at him.

"Who the _hell_ are you mocking, dweeb?" She said threateningly.

He just chuckled and ignored her question. He was so immature, such a _dobe_, that if Sakura had not seen him kill on the battlefield before, she would never have believed he was capable of it. But he wasn't some blood thirsty animal – in fact, the only one of the three of them that sometimes had to be pulled back from that dark brink was _Sasuke_.

"We got what we needed," Sasuke said in a monotone voice.

She loved him, but would it _kill_ him to at least sound like he cared? She rolled her eyes at him. "Yeah yeah, and while you boys got to _play_ I've been bored to tears."

Sasuke spared her a smile, although it wasn't really his style. "You can do the next one."

She grinned. "Thank you Sasuke-kun!" She refrained from jumping him. They were out in the open and Naruto was here. _That_ could wait until they were alone again.

"Teme!" Naruto whined. "I wanted to do the next one!" He huffed. "You're not in charge you know!"

"I know, dobe," Sasuke said, genuinely amused.

They had decided long ago that this would be a democracy. There were three of them, so when it came to making decisions, they were never deadlocked. But quite often, Naruto was the odd one out, voting for things that would _never_ happen. Occasionally, either Sakura or Sasuke would change their vote to make their friend feel like one of the gang. He _hated_ that he was outvoted more often than not.

Sakura glanced back at the little shop as they moved away, toward the setting sun. It was in the early stages of the orange tint that only sunset could bring.

"Did you kill him?" She asked, thinking about the old pervert and realising there was no sound within the shop anymore.

It was obvious they had, considering Sakura was the only one of them that could mess with people's memories. There was no way the boys would leave this guy alive if he could finger them in a line-up. Sasuke's Sharingan came in handy, but he hadn't figured out how to use it to do what came so easily to Sakura. This bugged him, but there were also a lot of things he used his Bloodline Limit to do that the others could _never_ do, like put up a genjutsu that hid them from view from even other ninja.

"Of course, Sakura," Naruto said, waving away her concern. "He just didn't scream, that's why you didn't hear it."

"He didn't scream because _I_ told him not to," Sasuke said, sounding slightly annoyed. His face remained impassive though.

"Don't argue boys," Sakura said, as Naruto opened his mouth to retort. She grabbed Sasuke's hand, linking their fingers together. "The important question is what did he tell you?"

"We were right," Sasuke said, without elaborating.

On Sakura's other side, Naruto brightened, humming softly to himself and admiring the trees as they found the path they'd taken to get here and entered the woods. They were well on their way to leaving the valley, and the nearby Gakutsuna town, so he was happy, but content – which explained why he wasn't bouncing all over the place. The energetic knucklehead was taking a time out, so it seemed.

Sakura ignored him and squeezed Sasuke's hand. "Well?"

"The cloud ninja are cleaning house with their missing-nin. If we enter Lightning Country, we'll have to keep a low profile."

Sakura nodded. "I still don't understand how _he_ knew that."

"You'd be surprised the sort of things shop owners overhear," Sasuke said. "He didn't even realise how valuable that information would've been, if he'd just bartered for it, instead of holding back."

Naruto chuckled at that, barely listening. "Old _goat_."

"Stop." Sasuke pulled Sakura still and shot a glare at Naruto as the blonde glanced at him, still walking.

"You're not in charge, _teme_."

"There's someone coming this way," Sasuke said softly. "Ninja by the feel of them. We should hide."

"Leaf?" Sakura asked, worried. They had wanted to avoid this.

He nodded. "Don't worry, they don't know we're here... _yet_."

They jumped up and off the road, and he activated his Sharingan to protect them. Sakura watched the four figures heading their way, ambling along the road as though they had no idea anyone was around – which they didn't. They were definitely ninja though. As they came closer, she recognised their faces. A heavy weight on her heart almost made her sigh deeply. She missed Konoha, but Kitsúne could never return. Sasuke pulled gently on her hand and she followed him and Naruto away from their old friends, and into the sunset.

X X X

**A/N: So, I know this doesn't explain very much, but this chapter is just about setting the mood. Kitsúne is making their way toward Lightning Country and I won't be leaving Konoha ninja, out of this story, so they're upcoming!  
>Kumo and Konoha have a very good relationship, so let's just say that what Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto have planned for the Lightning Country will affect both countries.<strong>

**Please review and stay tuned! You won't regret it! ^_^**


	2. Calling Card

**Author's Notes: New and improved… hopefully. ^_^  
>Read, love, and review! :)<strong>

Chapter Two. Calling Card.

Sakura Haruno murmured softly, waking up slowly but surely as she dimly became aware she was in a tree, her back against the trunk and one leg hanging over the edge of the thick branch. It was night, the soft, cool breeze greeting her like an old lover and she smiled slightly. She was used to this, waking up in an unusual position instead of the comfortable bed with feather pillows she'd had growing up.

To her right, she sensed Naruto, _seeing_ him a moment later as her eyes adjusted to the moonlight in the near darkness; Sasuke was several feet in front of her, his back to her, but wide awake. He was the lookout for the hours that passed over midnight, seeing as though he always seemed to sleep the least out of them all. Sakura was about three hours early in waking up to relieving him.

She could tell he knew she was awake now, but was clearly ignoring her.

Sasuke Uchiha was the epitome of his clan: gruff, arrogant, dismissive, and _gorgeous_. Sakura wondered sometimes if he even _liked_ her, let alone love. When they were alone, with nothing to do but knock about, he could be so considerate, so _loving_, that she put aside the picture in her head of the brusque young man who left her alone when she was upset and ignored her advances unless he was feeling particularly amorous. They had all lost loved ones to enemy Shinobi, but Sasuke was the only one who had decided to become emotionally disconnected because of it.

Even Naruto had noticed. But no-one actually _said_ anything about it.

Naruto snored in his sleep, louder than the last time, but the pinkette ignored him, her eyes boring into Sasuke's back.

The country east of the land of rice paddies was called the land of hot water, home to the hidden ninja village, Yugakure. They were currently resting just inside the border, with Hashirōn Town as their next stop before leaving again, heading north-east, to the land of frost. Hashirōn Town was only ten miles south-east of the village hidden in hot water. Sakura glanced up, past the canopy of the treetops, and stared at the stars instead of the ignorant Uchiha. They had been careful not to pick a spot to rest that would normally be used by ninja squads. It wasn't an easy life, but it had its perks: no missions other than the ones they set for themselves, no rules, and regulations other than the ones they had agreed upon as a group.

But Sakura missed those things, even if Sasuke and Naruto didn't. Her eyes returned to Sasuke's back and he shifted slightly, as though sensing her stare. She missed Ino Yamanaka, Kakashi Hatake, and the rest of her friends in the rookie nine. The devastation caused at the Chunin exams seemed a life time ago. Kitsúne was her here and now, and she had come to terms with that.

Sakura sighed deeply as Naruto Uzumaki groaned off to her right, distracting her from her thoughts. She tore her eyes away from her raven haired lover again, and frowned at the blonde instead. She could see his face; his expression morphed right in front of her, from annoyance to glazed lust. He grinned and murmured huskily.

"Fuck me… yeah… like that…"

Sakura raised her eyebrows at him, both flustered and irritated. When was he going to grow up? Naruto was only a foot away from her, lying on another thick branch to her right, so she lifted her leg that was dangled over the side and pushed the blonde. He wouldn't wake up, and instead continued with his suggestive comments. Beyond irritated now, she didn't just push him this time; using her body weight as leverage, she shoved Naruto, _hard_.

He tumbled over the side of the branch, hit a smaller branch underneath it (really, it was just an oversized twig), half-screamed in his sleep and toppled out of sight, onto the forest floor. If the night wasn't already quiet and if it wasn't dangerous to laugh and caw like an idiot, Sakura would've done exactly that. It was so comical, even though she felt a little bad for the blonde. It wasn't the most elegant of descents.

She stuck her head over the side of the branch she was on, ignoring Sasuke now, as he shifted his head slightly to look down at the blonde as well. The pinkette grinned down at her teammate.

Naruto snorted, groggily waking up, and Sakura giggled at him. He looked up, spotted the pinkette, and stood shakily. He climbed the tree again, but moved out of reach of the violent Kunoichi and mumbled at her.

"I'm getting away from you, you feisty bitch."

Sakura giggled again, knowing he wasn't as angry as he sounded. He never was really, just annoyed. She sighed heavily, trying to get comfortable again, her makeshift bed feeling more comfortable than it did when she'd first fallen asleep. Sasuke returned to ignoring her and she closed her eyes, annoyed at him.

They were heading into enemy territory tomorrow, and if he wasn't careful, she planned on making a scene in front of them just to force the Uchiha to cover their tracks. She giggled to herself, though audible by both of her boys. Tomorrow was going to be so much _fun_.

X X X

Neji Hyuuga watched the sun rise, thinking about the night gone before. He had been trying out some of the local delicacies with his teammates and due to his own aversion to everything spicy, was the only one not passed out from the smorgasbord laid out for them by the innkeeper. So he'd decided to keep an eye out for their quarry, his senses primed and with the occasional activation of his Byakugan. They were in the land of rice paddies, looking for a cold blooded assassin with ninja abilities who was going around and picking off teams that carried the insignia of either Konoha or Kumo.

The problem was, no-one knew who it was, only that it was a lone assassin.

This was a goodwill mission as well – just another way to boost the relations between the leaf and cloud villages. Even the strongest alliance could fall apart with a single act.

Neji sat up straight, as the orange of the sunrise faded. They had left Gakutsuna town, realising that the disreputable people watching them from the alley ways were all ninja. They were not here to get into a brawl with random Shinobi, no matter how much Lee and Guy Sensei had seemed disappointed when Neji reminded them of this. So they'd set up camp in the forest between the seedy town and a tea shop, seemingly in the middle of nowhere. He prodded his team mates awake; Tenten rose last, the laziest of them all.

"Can't we sleep just for a little while longer?" She asked.

"Come on Tenten," Lee roused on her. He was wide awake the moment his eyes opened. "Where's all that indomitable youthful spirit?"

She groaned. "Still with that dinner I ate last night."

Guy laughed. "All these youthful antics are making me want to break a sweat. I recommend–"

"Wait," Neji said seriously. "Nothing wakes Tenten up better than tea."

The brunette Kunoichi shot him a grateful look and he hid his blush at her attention, as he always did. They packed in silence (well, Neji and Tenten did), and moved swiftly. Apparently, they were racing to see who would get to the tea shop first. Neji had long come to terms with the antics of his Sensei and Lee, but it still made him inwardly cringe, every time. He shared a look with Tenten, knowing she felt the same way.

The outside of the tea shop was quiet and stiffening slightly, Neji realised something was wrong. What was it? He glanced at his comrades, at their expressionless faces. That was the problem: there was no aroma of tea coming from this tea shop. Team Guy entered the shop as though they already knew what they were going to find.

The man was a civilian. Neji's Byakugan confirmed he'd never infused his chakra. There was no development whatsoever. He was murdered, the cuts on his body consistent with quick, precise fatal blows; done by one or more kunai. Neji looked the body over. The man was in his seventies and his shirt had been torn off of him in order to carve a symbol onto his exposed torso. It was familiar somehow.

"This is certainly the work of a depraved Shinobi," Lee said softly.

"Guy Sensei," Tenten said tentatively. "I've seen that symbol before, in Lady Tsunade's office. It's a calling card, isn't it?"

Guy nodded sourly, but it was Neji who responded. "Kitsúne."

X X X

**A/N: A bit ominous? The trouble is just around the corner. Please review and stay tuned! You won't regret it! ^_^**


	3. The Bounty

**Author's Notes: Technically, this is a filler chap, so please bear that in mind, and be gentle with me. Everything happens for a reason. ^_^  
>Read, love, and review! :)<strong>

Chapter Three. The Bounty.

The Hokage had retired, _again_. He'd come out of retirement the night Minato Namikaze had sealed the Kyuubi into his only son to save Konoha, not wanting to return to the task. Hiruzen Sarutobi wished he could do that night over again; this time, he would do the Shiki Fuujin himself. He was an old man, and Minato was still young; he shouldn't have left his son behind.

Hiruzen sighed, packing up the last of his things. He'd left them here accidentally, and his successor had found them only recently. It had been a full two months since Lady Tsunade had taken office. How the _hell_ had the Fuuin Jutsu scroll he'd made up for his grandson found its way into a locked, chakra sealed cabinet? It was supposed to be in a hidden compartment in his old desk. It was lucky he supposed, that Tsunade had found it, though he figured she'd actually been looking for something to drink.

"You found it I see," Tsunade said, striding into her office, with Kakashi Hatake not far behind her.

Hiruzen nodded his head. "Did you get the bottle of sake I left you?"

She smiled at him. "And just in time to avoid Shizune's suspicions."

Kakashi chuckled. Tsunade's assistant didn't approve of her shishou's habits, let alone that the third Hokage encouraged them. It was a well established fact that a drunken (or even just slightly tipsy) Tsunade was less coherent but more predictable than a sober one. Some people, Hiruzen included (and mostly), liked to test that boundary often. After all, Tsunade Senju had agreed to become the fifth Hokage while trying to drink the old man "under the table" as the expression went. It had taken Hiruzen almost nineteen years to accomplish…

Hiruzen lifted the box that contained the scroll he'd been looking for, along with a few other knick knacks Tsunade had neglected to inform him about and moved to leave the room. He stopped suddenly however, remembering something he'd wanted to tell Tsunade. He pointed to a scroll on her desk.

"That communiqué came in for you from Team Guy. I think they've found something interesting in the land of rice paddies."

Tsunade narrowed her eyes at him. As a Hokage, even a retired one, he didn't need her permission to read a priority dispatch, let alone a routine communication from squads deployed outside of Konoha. But she had discussed the implications of just helping himself to her mail before and clearly, he needed a reminder.

Kakashi glanced at the old man. "Did it say what it was?"

"Kakashi!" Tsunade roused. Both men chuckled at her this time.

"Yes," Hiruzen said, having recovered first. "Something about a rogue group of Shinobi."

The fifth Hokage frowned at him. Rogue Shinobi in the land of rice paddies? That wasn't a surprise, so why did Guy take the time to write that in a communiqué? She quickly opened the scroll and read it, Kakashi watching her with barely contained interest. Every hint of missing-nin interested him, and had done so for the last six years. It was to be expected of course, considering the departure of Team Seven from Konoha.

So, despite the fact that he wasn't supposed to look at the scroll (rules and all), Tsunade handed it to the silver haired ninja to read as well. His single eye narrowed and the familiar lettering written by Guy satisfied his curiosity. The infamous Kitsúne had been in the area; they were an unknown group that were not listed in the bingo book because no nation had proof of their existence. Sure, the distinct calling card had been carved into the skin of their latest victim, but according to the laws of the great nations, that was not enough to put them in the bingo book.

Nobody who encountered them ever survived, so there was no proof they were actually ninja… apparently.

Disappointed, Kakashi handed the scroll back to the fifth Hokage. But his reaction had not gone unnoticed, and the third Hokage queried him.

"Do you miss your team?"

Kakashi didn't respond, other than to sigh. The truth was, Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto occasionally entered his mind, just like his Sensei and Obito and Rin, but he preferred not to be questioned about them. He felt like such a failure. Firstly, Sasuke had wanted to leave because he'd overheard the elders talk about using the fallout of the attack on Konoha during the Chunin exams as an excuse not to go after retribution. They had their hands full just trying to return their daily lives back to normal and didn't want to "waste our resources on a pointless pursuit".

Next, Sakura had refused to let the object of her desires leave without her. She had lost her parents and didn't seem to think there was any reason to stay in Konoha anymore. She wanted to go wherever Sasuke did, regardless of the consequences, which was hardly surprising. It was Naruto's decision to leave that _actually_ surprised Kakashi. Didn't he want to become Hokage one day? He could never be trusted with that position now, having abandoned his village, along with his team mates. It made no sense and had only added fuel to the idea that Naruto had had some kind of hidden agenda: revenge had never been his _thing_ after all.

"I'll take that as a yes," Hiruzen said, his gaze now drifting to the portraits of former Hokages, just as the copy ninja's had in his musing.

Tsunade watched them for a moment, and then sighed, letting her own eyes coast upward and at the wall. They were all thinking the same thing, but it was Kakashi who voiced it. He shook his head at the portrait of his former Sensei.

"I'm sorry Minato. I couldn't stop him from leaving."

X X X

It was called Hashirōn Town, this tiny speck of a waste of space in the land of hot water. Sakura Haruno was disgusted, looking around at the brothels, the gambling stalls, and the deplorable characters manning said booths. She just wanted to stock up on whatever necessities they needed this time and _leave_.

Naruto Uzumaki, the _baka_, had other ideas of course. His eyes roved over the brothels, but lingered on the gambling stalls; he loved money, and the prospect of entering a gambling house, _knowing_ he was going to come out with more than he took in was very tempting to him. The childlike look on his face hinted to the first words out of his mouth.

"I wanna try the casinos first!"

"Hold on dobe," Sasuke said, his voice oddly calm for feeling so frustrated. "Remember why we're here."

Naruto nodded his head, but kept his eyes on the nearest entrance to one of the larger casinos.

"I know teme, but we need money and I'm feeling lucky today."

He had an uncanny knack for gambling. Even Sasuke couldn't voice a reason not to let him let loose every time they found a gambling house. But they never advertised themselves as ninja, and this town had a reputation for reacting _strongly_ to the presence of Shinobi who were not from the nearby village hidden in hot water. The risk someone could out them was slim, but that was still too high for the Uchiha's taste. They needed to do their shopping then _leave_.

"Sasuke's right Naruto," Sakura said. "This place is too high risk to gamble here. Let's get going."

The blonde grumbled. "Fine, fine, but I want some ramen before we leave."

She grabbed him roughly, locking arms with him and pulling the blonde along with her; Sasuke followed silently.

"Of course you do," Sakura said happily.

She kept wondering what she could do, to keep her promise to herself last night. There was a high probability anything she did would draw the attention of ninja, so she kept her eyes peeled for an area away from the sort of tea and dango shops that Shinobi would normally frequent. Sakura loved dango, but wasn't so terribly in the mood right now. She wanted to play a prank, any prank on her boys.

Her eyes raked over the stalls as they exited the entertainment section of town and ambled toward the business end. Honestly, she'd expected more from a town so close to a hidden ninja village. The last time they'd been this close to Yugakure, Kitsúne had avoided being seen in public. It became prudent after some kids had seen them in the area of a recent kill they'd made. Visiting ninja from Shimogakure who had stolen a scroll from some high paid merchant for a mission had drawn Sasuke's attention.

The Uchiha knew what he was doing when looking for scrolls that would help them.

And unfortunately for the life expectancy of the previous owners of that particular scroll, they'd put up a fight and piercing through genjutsu turned out to be their specialty. So they had had to die.

But luckily for Sakura, Sasuke and Naruto, the kids hadn't been very successful in identifying them, so they were able to leave unnoticed.

As Sakura mulled over the childish pranks she could pull, Sasuke stopped them, his arm snaking around her waist and pulling her away from Naruto. She half expected (though doubted) him to pull her into a passionate, make out session. But Sasuke had other ideas. Wordlessly, he pointed to the window of a nearby shop and Naruto whined. There was a picture of some unruly looking rouge ninja and a monetary reward written next to the details of his persona.

He was a cold blooded assassin with ninja abilities who was going around and picking off teams that carried the insignia of either Konoha or Kumo. Naruto's eyes trailed finally, to the zeros on the offered reward, his eyes lighting up and his mouth agape.

"Forget gambling!" He half shouted. "Let's catch us a bounty!"

X X X

**A/N: Not the most exciting chapter, but it's here for a reason, so please be patient.  
>Please review and stay tuned! You won't regret it! ^_^<strong>


	4. A Moment of Pleasure

**Author's Notes: I feel like things are happening a little slowly and I have to keep reminding myself these are short chapters, and it's too be expected. That said, please tell me if you think it's going to slow or too fast. :)  
>Read, love, and review! ^_^<strong>

Chapter Four. A Moment of Pleasure.

The trail they were following had led them into the land of frost. Sasuke Uchiha, being the only one with an ability to track the enemy without leaving any evidence, had taken the lead. But Sakura Haruno had her doubts that even he could follow… _nothing_. This cold blooded assassin with ninja abilities who was going around and picking off teams that carried the insignia of either Konoha or Kumo was incredibly good at keeping a low profile. The pinkette had had an idea on how to lure this assassin out into the open, and Sasuke dismissed her idea out of hand, while she fumed silently at his indifference to her plan.

Naruto Uzumaki had agreed with her. But the blonde's earlier attention seeking tendencies had caused Sakura to hug and kiss him (ahem, NOT the way she liked to kiss Sasuke), wanting to make Sasuke jealous. Well it _worked_. And this was how the raven haired dealt with jealousy; he either got angrier and angrier until he forced Naruto to visit a local dingy hospital, or started to ignore the object of his jealousy. He had decided on the latter today, and promptly pretended Sakura wasn't with them. Why did he have to be such an arrogant prick? If he could just take a joke once in awhile…

Sakura growled audibly and Naruto sighed heavily.

"Sasuke," the blonde said, causing the Uchiha to stop walking. "We need to go with Sakura's idea. There's no sign of this guy anywhere."

The last bit of solid intelligence they'd received was three days ago. This was wearing thin and they _needed_ the money. It was a lot of yen for a single assassin, and Sasuke didn't want to underestimate the man. The high reward meant he was top of the range, and he would _need_ his Sharingan for this one. He glanced at Naruto, his eyes drifting to Sakura, despite himself, and sighed inwardly. They were right of course, but he didn't want to give the blonde the satisfaction of thinking he'd outthought him.

This idea… it was a very _Naruto_ idea, and the Uchiha was surprised that Sakura was the one to suggest it. She'd been hanging off the blonde _dobe's_ every word for too long. Sasuke sighed outwardly this time, his eyes watching the trees around them. They were off the beaten track, walking along the forest floor, stepping over exposed roots and moving in the manner that civilians would, if lost in the forest. But they weren't lost. This was just another thing they did every now and then so they could sneak up on people without drawing suspicion to their ninja origins.

Less than a mile up ahead the sparse woods would open to a field and they needed to make a decision on where to go next. It wasn't often that Naruto wasn't the odd one out; this time it was Sasuke disagreeing with _them_. From the first day they had started calling themselves Kitsúne, so few moments had presented an opportunity for the Uchiha to be surprised by the blonde. The knucklehead was crazy after all.

Sasuke turned to look at Sakura, who was staring at him expectantly.

"This idea of yours," he said slowly, "is insane."

Sakura giggled softly, happier now that he was looking straight at her. "You mean it's a Naruto kind of idea."

"Hey!" Naruto whined. "There's nothing wrong with this idea!"

The pinkette laughed. "No, nothing really. But Sasuke's right, it _is_ insane."

Sasuke spared her a small smile, his hand going instinctively to hers. This drew the warmth in her body to her hand and she gripped his fingers tightly, grateful.

The blonde huffed, glaring at the Uchiha. "Just because she won't fuck _me_ doesn't mean all the insane ideas come from me."

Sasuke couldn't help himself as Sakura berated Naruto and proceeded to belt him over the head. He chuckled ever so softly. Maybe this idea wasn't so bad after all. Once Sakura had calmed down, the Uchiha let go of her hand; though he _hadn't_ forgotten she hadn't let go to hit Naruto.

"Let's do it then," Sasuke said and the mood brightened.

Sakura's idea was to find the Kumo ninja they knew was nearby (via the information that had originally led them to the land of frost in the first place), and follow them to see where they were headed. This would put them in an easy position to interrupt if the assassin was nearby and struck the Shinobi or, as Naruto had suggested as an alternative if that went wrong, to steal their clothes, and pose as them to draw the assassin out. Now that he put the idea into more cohesive thought, Sasuke could suddenly see why Sakura had posed the idea. But he kept quiet; Naruto wasn't the only one who got smug when their ideas panned out.

Shimogakure was nearby, but they weren't interested in ninja from _this_ land. Shimo had a tentative alliance with Kumo however, and a squad from the village hidden in the clouds was supposed to be spending the coming night in Kurakuta Town, a _quaint_ place with enough background "music" to keep secret conversations secret without having to whisper. It was the perfect place to meet, greet, and never be overheard doing so. This in and of itself led Sakura to guess that it was the meeting place of both Kumo and Shimo ninja and the prospect of possibly listening in on their discussion was _very_ tempting.

But they had a bounty to earn, and nothing that Kumo and Shimo might be up to concerned them.

They planned to intercept the Kumo ninja when heading out of the land of frost, given that the assassin didn't try first. That would leave Naruto's thieving idea as "plan B". So they continued, out of the woods and into the field, moving faster now and headed north, toward Kurakuta Town. Shortly before the town, they decided to clean up, not having the yen to spare for a night in the local hotel; they rarely did, sparing their money for the necessities rather than the luxuries. Still, Sakura wished they could find a town that wasn't dingy and splash out on said luxuries. The reward for this bounty would give them this, and was incentive enough that even Naruto was keeping his eyes on the prize, so to speak.

They stopped near a stream, and Naruto took off, carrying their gourds and heading toward the stream, a bounce in his step and Sakura took Sasuke's hand, pulling him along with her as the blonde disappeared. She hadn't been alone with him for days and the desire to hide from the knucklehead and act on her physical _needs_ was so strong that it took even Sasuke by surprise. He didn't protest as she moved toward the nearby trees. They weren't a forest, or even woods, but were still ample enough to hide them.

"Sakura," Sasuke said, once they were out of view of the stream.

Sakura silenced him with a kiss. He always tried to stop her when she came onto him out in the open. He valued his privacy. But she wasn't relenting, so he indulged her, recognising also that he was grateful to be out of range of the _dobe_ for the first time in days. Who knew when it would happen again, at least until they killed this assassin and collected the reward. Sasuke _needed_ a moment to vent, so started running his hand down Sakura's top, his fingers brushing her breasts. She moaned into his mouth and pulled him tighter to her, her back against a lone tree.

Sasuke's hand slid down between the pinkette's legs, tugging on the tight black shorts she wore under her pink skirt, eager to get inside of them. He pulled them down to pool at her ankles, leaving only her skirt to protect Sakura's bare ass from the coarse bark of the tree behind her. She realised a moment later just how _much_ he'd pulled down and wrapped her legs around his waist after collecting the said items and keeping them from falling to the ground, breaking their kiss as she did so. Sasuke started to undo his own pants and Sakura leant backward against the tree.

"Slow down a _little_ Sasuke-kun," she roused, earning a grunt from the Uchiha.

She rested her arms on his shoulders as he slid his fingers into her, getting her ready for what he was more eager to thrust into her. She mewled in appreciation, pulling Sasuke toward her and resuming their kiss. She wanted to feel loved, even if she doubted his heart sometimes. But this was just sex right now, just a quickie to vent the tension they'd _both_ been feeling the last few days. And when Sasuke finally undid his pants and thrust deeply into her, Sakura threw her head back, screaming his name.

So much for staying out of sight. The blonde knucklehead came back from his trip to the stream a few minutes later, but continued to be ignored by the _very_ vocal lovers. Sasuke gave a final, forceful thrust and grunted in pleasure as Sakura moaned at the familiar sensation of him releasing into her.

Naruto snapped out of his stunned reverie finally, at the sounds of their copulation.

"Oh for fuck _sakes_, get a room you two!"

X X X

**A/N: Only Kitsúne this chapter, sorry. I realised their story was coming out slower than the one for the Konoha ninja, so they get another chapter all to themselves. And, I couldn't help myself, an extremely "eager" SasuSaku moment too. A mere taste of a longer lemon I plan to write a little later. ;)  
>The summary for this story hints to an upcoming chapter that I'm BUSTING to get to, but it has to wait it's turn. *sighs* <strong>

**Please review and stay tuned! You won't regret it! ^_^**


	5. A Matter of Perspective

**Author's Notes: Woot! One step closer to the VERY important hunting down of Kitsúne. ;)  
>Read, love, and review! ^_^<strong>

Chapter Five. A Matter of Perspective.

Kurakuta Town was lively to put it nicely, with so much noise during the day that one would think they were permanently playing host to a festival troupe. It very nearly _looked_ like it as well. Team Guy had just arrived and already Neji Hyuuga felt like he would go deaf before they had a chance to leave. The sound didn't emanate out for miles beyond the limits of the town, as one would suspect, though travelling along the thoroughfare in this region, he had definitely _heard_ the town before he could see it, even with his eyes.

"This is a fancy dump," Tenten noted. "I wonder if they have any gambling halls in here."

"We are not here to gamble Tenten," Lee told her.

"Of course not, I was just wondering." She looked around. "Neji, can you see any unusual chakra signatures?"

"Unusual how Tenten?" Neji asked.

"As in one ninja standing apart from others," she said patiently.

He activated his Byakugan and looked around. He saw Tenten's chakra system first, then Rock Lee's and Might Guy. They all stared at him expectantly and he moved his head slightly to accommodate for his blind spot. There were definitely ninja in this town. A group of Shimogakure ninja had just left a tavern and inside said tavern, a squad of cloud Shinobi were still sitting at the table the frost ninja had previously shared with them. Looking further, Neji noted that there were indeed more people who had activated their chakra network, but none with enough power to fit the profile of this so-called assassin.

He released his Byakugan and shook his head to his team mates.

"We'll just have to search the old fashioned way," Guy said enthusiastically. "We'll split up and meet at the Inn in two hours."

"Very good Guy Sensei," Lee said loudly.

"Let the power of youth lead you to our goal Lee!"

They left Tenten and Neji alone, Lee heading toward the clothes stores and Guy moving toward the hotels and taverns. Neji glanced at Tenten, who chuckled and winked at him.

"See you later Neji," she said and moved toward the restaurant district.

Neji watched her go, and then turned away silently. He was left with the entertainment district. Here, there were troupe members performing stunts and so-called magicians doing magic tricks; with a quick check of his Byakugan, he noticed they had been using their chakra network for years. It was incredibly misleading. Sighing, he turned his eyes away and looked up and down the busy street. He highly doubted any method they employed, in the middle of such a busy town, was going to reveal the assassin they were looking for. But Guy Sensei had wanted to be thorough and cross Kurakuta Town off the list of possibilities. Neji supposed that made sense. The man might act like a clown in green spandex, but his many years as a ninja were not to be taken lightly.

Meanwhile, Lee was distracted by the clothes stores, his eyes drifting over the strange assortment of garments that only civilians would buy and wear. Wearing these would contribute if a ninja wanted to blend in with civilians, to hide out so to speak. He was just wondering what he would wear if he was in the assassin's position, to hide himself, when a loud commotion caught his attention. Even in this boisterous town, it was creating quite a racket. Curious, he moved toward it, bumping into person after person by accident, and then almost colliding with a man about the same age as him.

"I am sorry," Lee apologised, bowed, and then moved away, but not before looking back at the civilian curiously. He didn't look familiar, but he could've sworn they'd met once before.

X X X

"Fuck you," Naruto Uzumaki said through gritted teeth.

Kitsúne had entered Kurakuta Town several hours ago and were comparing their disguises while standing in front of a clothes shop. Luckily, due to the _volume_ in this town, even the elderly lady manning the stall hadn't heard the crass words out of Naruto's blow hole of a mouth. Sasuke Uchiha had to struggle not to visibly wince as the blonde _baka_ called him something that surely would've made Sakura thump him, had she'd been close enough to hear them. A few feet away, she was watching a man perform tricks with fire, not paying the slightest attention to her boys. She was fascinated by it, how the man could swallow fire without using a jutsu and not hurt himself.

"You can't go around looking like that," Sasuke said evenly to Naruto. "I won't be seen dead hanging around you."

"Then go away _Sas-gay_," the blonde said annoyingly.

"Why must you be so annoying?"

Naruto shrugged his shoulders. "I like the face paint."

"And the Sari, and the ridiculously _short_ pants?"

"No-one's going to know we're ninja when I wear this."

"No ninja would be caught dead in it," Sasuke said, fighting the urge to growl at his friend.

"Exactly!"

Sasuke gave up, not wanting to get into an argument in public. He looked over at Sakura and once she'd glanced in his direction, caught her eye, silently drawing her away from the performers she was admiring. The pinkette came up to stand next to Naruto, who was already dressed in his new, eye sore clothes. Noticing this, she took a furtive step away from him and toward Sasuke.

"What the hell is that you're wearing Naruto?" She asked, her eyes widening at the blonde.

He chuckled. "You sound like Sasuke. Look, it's a disguise, and I blend in. Take a look at the civilians in this town and tell me I stand out."

"You stand out," Sasuke said immediately.

Naruto pouted. "You didn't look around. I blend in teme!"

"He's got a point," Sakura said, before she could stop herself. "But Naruto, until you take that off, you're walking around on your own."

As far as she was concerned, the henge was enough. They didn't need to make themselves look goofy to not attract attention, especially in a place as tightly pack as this one. Naruto poked his tongue at them and took off quickly.

Sasuke sighed. "I suppose I'd better make sure he doesn't make an even bigger idiot of himself."

Sakura giggled, but didn't follow, watching them from afar instead. Naruto pushed past the crowd and was humming to himself when he heard a commotion up ahead. He could feel the slight fluctuation of a chakra signature, so decided to investigate. That ridiculous teme and Sakura could walk around, hand in hand, and find another "not so private" place to shag; _he_ was going to look for the Kumogakure ninja they knew were in this dingy town. Maybe this chakra signature belonged to one of them.

He got a few stub toes and a bruised rib, but managed to make his way through the crowd. There were too many _rude_ people in the world. Naruto noticed the Kumo nin immediately. A strangely dressed ginger haired Jounin and three two Chunin: all looking aggravated as a drunken civilian was jumping all over them. The drunk – a middle aged man with no shoes on – was half screaming something about repenting and looking for a single tree in an infinite forest. Naruto shook his head, chuckling.

'_Drunkards are so much fun.'_

It looked harmless, so he just watched. The drunk was being pried off of the leader now, and despite his complaining, still went with the authorities who had arrived to escort this unruly character away. Naruto was disappointed. He liked it when they struggled and put up a fight. But this guy gave up way too easily. Maybe he wasn't as drunk as he seemed. The blonde watched the way the man was walking, his eyes trained on the uncoordinated movements, but couldn't tell if this man was just another disorderly idiot or not.

Sasuke came up to him a moment later, ignoring the man who had bumped into him and apologised. But a moment later, he looked back at the guy who was already moving away and had to stop his jaw from dropping. What were _they_ doing here?

"Teme?" Naruto asked, and let his eyes drift to what had caught the Uchiha's attention. "Bushier brow Sensei's squad."

"Let's get Sakura."

"What about the Kumo ninja?" Naruto asked. "And the assassin?"

Sasuke grabbed his wrist and pulled him through the dispersing crowd. The pinkette took the information in stride.

"We need to get out of here."

"No," Naruto snapped in a very Sasuke way. "We need to find this assassin."

"But if we're spotted…"

"She's right Naruto."

Naruto grumbled. "Look, we can still do this, we just need to be careful, keep the henge up, cast a genjutsu that can fool Neji for a while and dress in inconspicuous clothing."

"You already look like an idiot," Sakura said, annoyed. "I'm not dressing up like that."

Sasuke activated his Sharingan, looking for the colours of the distinctive chakra signatures. He spotted the two separate teams immediately. If he just kept an eye on them and avoided using chakra when Neji's Byakugan was active…

"I agree with Naruto."

"Sasuke." Sakura was shocked.

"Not about the dressing up," the Uchiha said, "about still trying to get the reward. We need this money."

She fidgeted. "Providing we don't get ourselves caught, what do you suggest we do? The assassin is after both Kumo and Konoha ninja. If we follow one group, he could easily attack the other instead."

He nodded, accepting the wisdom in her words, but had nothing more to offer.

"So, which one do we follow?" Naruto whispered, eager now that they were coming over to his line of thought. "I know it's too dangerous to get too close to bushy brow's squad, but which one is the assassin more likely to follow?"

X X X

**A/N: Yep, those two scenes were happening at the same time. Btw, I more often than not, focus on Neji when in the Team Guy perspective because he's hot. No reason other than I can't help myself. ;)  
>Please review and stay tuned! You won't regret it! ^_^<strong>


	6. Living In Hope

**Author's Notes: Wow, it's been just over 2 weeks since I last posted. Feels like longer. It's been so HOT and I hate summer. Maybe I need to copy 19****th**** century high society and travel according to the seasons, lol. ;)  
><strong>

**Read, love, and review! ^_^**

Chapter Six. Living In Hope.

Hinata Hyuuga was getting a strange feeling. It had started when Kurenai Yuhi had asked her to help her pick out a birthday present for Asuma Sarutobi the other day, shortly after she'd heard from Kakashi Hatake that Neji's squad had found the most recent victim of the rogue Shinobi group just known as Kitsúne. Hinata thought it odd that anyone name themselves after a fox but whatever.

The strange feeling made her think of Naruto Uzumaki, her long time crush. She'd been thinking about him a lot lately, wishing he was still in the village. The anniversary of Kakashi's squad going rogue was coming up and as usual, Hinata found herself more depressed every time it did. Kurenai was one of the few who knew she'd always liked Naruto, so attempted to draw her mind away from her reminiscing by spending the day shopping. She used Asuma's birthday as an excuse, but both women knew what she was _really_ up to.

But for now, Hinata was fighting the strange feeling twisting her stomach while sparring with her Sensei.

On the sidelines, Kiba Inuzuka grinned at Hinata, his eyes raking over her body as she moved into the stance for her jyuuken strike. He'd heard her father talking about arranging an engagement for her within the next six months. He hadn't decided on a husband and was hesitating for reasons he couldn't explain to himself.

Kiba had had a crush on Hinata since their academy days, and wasn't shy about it, but hadn't exactly been declaring it either. He knew how the clans worked, being a part of one himself, so held no fairytale notions. Still, if it was at all possible…

"Come on Hinata," Kurenai teased. "You've gotta come at me faster than that!"

Kiba chuckled as the Hyuuga screwed up her face in renewed determination and activated her Byakugan again. She was really set on beating her Sensei, although she wasn't at her level. Hinata had been this way for six years, not that the Inuzuka had a single clue as to what had caused the sudden shift in her demeanour. She was fighting for more than recognition these days, a hint of regret and fierceness driving her.

Hinata was trying to be as strong as she could so that one day (hopefully), if she ever ran into Naruto Uzumaki again, she could bring him home. She had thought of little else since he'd left.

It was almost twenty minutes later when the two women finally took a break, choosing the moment once they had another visitor.

"Kakashi," Kurenai said, towelling her face.

It had been awhile since a mere training session had been this tough for her, no matter her sparring partner, but she had only recently lost her pregnancy fat and had been frustrated for so long, not being able to train. Her husband was looking after their daughter while she got in some much needed exercise, and Hinata had volunteered to help her.

Kakashi Hatake nodded to her, and then turned his head to look at the sheepish Hyuuga. "Your father is looking for you."

Hinata nodded, bowed, thanked him, and then left quickly. After a moment, Kiba too removed himself from the training area. Kakashi had just finished talking with the head of the Hyuuga clan, concerning Hiashi's worries over another matter and the man had asked the copy ninja to fetch his daughter for him. Kakashi could only guess as to the man's motivation: he did not often summon Hinata in the middle of the day. Rumour had it he was finally sorting through the paperwork on the marriage proposals made to him for both of his daughters, as well as Neji.

Well, Kakashi had heard it from Kō, who was the only Hyuuga who ever told him _anything_. Kō wasn't the most tactful person he knew, but was one of those who thought high enough of Kakashi that he let him in on some things. Of course, being a clan member, there was always a line the man never crossed. Every clan was secretive of course, with varying degrees of censorship.

"You seem unusually sombre today," Kurenai said, breaking Kakashi's train of thought.

They both knew why though; the same reason Hinata had been down lately.

"Have you considered going back to Anbu?" She asked, silently thinking that Kakashi needed to stop waiting for a miracle.

He shrugged. "It does seem a popular suggestion as of late."

"It's better than just hanging around, lifelessly waiting for something that isn't going to happen."

She realised she might sound a little callous, but Kakashi wasn't offended.

"I'm not sure I'm ready," he said evenly.

This depressed version of him was _depressing_, to say the least. He wasn't holed up or sulking though, just not caring about anything but missions anymore. After all, Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno, and Naruto Uzumaki weren't the only team members he hadn't saved. They may not have died, like his original team, but it was near enough.

"You're living in hope they'll come back Kakashi?" Kurenai asked, teasing the copy ninja gently.

He smiled slightly. "Better that then throwing in the towel."

X X X

The leader of the squad from Kumogakure was called Himunari Akatachi. He was an old acquaintance of Hiashi Hyuuga's and recognised Neji immediately. He didn't know what to think of the Hyuuga's Sensei, or that strange miniature version of him, but the only girl in Neji's squad seemed nice enough. Neji bowed respectfully, remembering Himunari from several diplomatic dinners in the Hyuuga complex, growing up.

The strangely dressed ginger haired Jounin wasn't the most jolly or expressive person (which was why he got along with Hiashi so well), but to the outside observer, he _looked_ like just another Gai Maito. It was his personality that was a little more reserved. He introduced the three Chunin in his squad after Guy made introductions.

"Kurami, Shibo, and Kusane," Himunari said, indicating to his team in turn.

As it turned out, both teams were here looking for the assassin with ninja abilities who was going around and picking off teams that carried the insignia of either Konoha or Kumo. So in the interest of inter-village relations, the Kumo Jounin suggested the two teams cooperate on this little venture. They would not do well to go their separate ways and race each other to the prize, although he could tell this idea would go over well with Guy and his "mini-me" called… Lee, he believed.

"Well, this will work out well," Himunari said, agreeing with Guy.

Both teams had decided to use themselves as bait for this assassin, and together, they weren't sure if they doubled their chances of attracting the guy's attention or scaring him off. The last group attacked was a squad of four, before that, a joining of several. Whoever this assassin was, he clearly planned out his attacks meticulously before striking. They had a better chance of overpowering him with more numbers, but it was quality over quantity after all.

Enthusiastic as ever, Guy and Lee proclaimed that the power of youth would see them victorious. Uncertain, Neji was surprised when Tenten grabbed his arm and have him a half hearted hug.

"Lighten up," she said, giggling softly. "After all, we have the power of youth on our side."

Neji just rolled his eyes at her.

Meanwhile, Kitsúne followed the teams at a safe distance as they left Kurakuta Town. Sasuke Uchiha was grateful that Neji hadn't activated his Byakugan yet, believing he was only able to keep them in his sights because of his Sharingan. There was no need to alert the Hyuuga to their presence. Silently, Sasuke promised himself to put keeping off Neji's radar ahead of succeeding in procuring this bounty. There would be other rewards with less problems.

At that thought, he wondered if maybe they should just let this one go.

But noting the eager Naruto Uzumaki and recently persuaded Sakura Haruno (though considerably less eager) he knew it would be an argument that would only take time and effort he didn't want to waste. Besides, it wasn't like they were heading into this blindfolded.

"Looks like we got lucky," Naruto said softly, his eyes narrowed as he stared in the direction he knew the two teams to be.

Sasuke was the only one who could see them, and was leading the way.

"They're both here for the same reason," he told the stupid blonde. "Don't be so naïve."

"We aren't going to wait until the assassin has killed the squads before moving in, are we?" Sakura asked, not wanting to be responsible for the death on Konoha ninja, no matter who they were.

"What makes you think one lone assassin could take on bushier brow Sensei's squad and live?" Naruto asked.

The pinkette ignored his tone, an indication to how nervous she was, despite her agreement to go ahead with it. They had a plan and it sounded solid, but she worried nonetheless. Yes, the idea of being caught or seen was terrifying, but the imminent chaos and potential fatalities concerned her even more. She didn't want to watch any of them die just so they could get the bounty.

She did realise she was being overly dramatic, but they'd never been this close to leaf ninja before, on purpose that was.

Sasuke, glancing at Sakura in his peripherals, decided to allay her concerns. But as he move to assure her that there was no way Team Guy was going to die at the hands of some lone assassin, no matter how good that assassin was, he stopped himself.

There was a singular, powerful chakra signature nearby, heading toward the two teams. Sasuke noticed him first, then Neji. It was show time.

X X X

**A/N: Not much in the way of Kitsúne, but the next chapter is just them, the two squads they're following, and the assassin of course. Something to look forward to. ;)  
>One-sided KibaHina, just so you know.<strong>

**Please review and stay tuned! You won't regret it! ^_^**


	7. Unknown Assassin

**Author's Notes: Sorry for the late update. In all honesty, I'd put this story on hiatus because it was annoying me, which I blame wholeheartedly on this chapter. Issues arose, complicated the matter, and then were eventually overcome: it's here now, so enjoy. ;)**

Chapter Seven. Unknown Assassin.

Sasuke Uchiha was good with genjutsu. His Sharingan allowed him to manipulate an area into looking empty when it wasn't (as he'd done previously, to avoid Team Guy back when they were still in the land of rice paddies), or throw up ghost images that made the battlefield look more chaotic than it really was. These abilities expended a sizable amount of his chakra, and in having to remain motionless in order to keep the smokescreen up, it left him vulnerable to attack. As a result, he'd grudgingly agreed to stay out of the more physical aspects of this fight… for now.

And of course, this was his first opportunity to see if it could fool even the Byakugan.

Sakura Haruno's genjutsu however, was of little use here. She was better at altering memories, an ability she'd perfected after a particularly nasty fight over a scroll a few years back. It had been very informative. She moved away from Sasuke slowly and carefully, her eyes on the teams in front of them. This assassin was tough, and had knocked back the Chunins in the Kumo team quickly and easily. Tenten was keeping her distance, the weapons mistress making full use of her seemingly endless supply of summoned kunai.

Closer to their target, Neji's lightning fast moves were extremely impressive, but the assassin seemed to have a fondness for using multiple shadow clones. Naruto Uzumaki was only a foot away from Sakura, and seeing that he had this in common with the assassin both annoyed him and presented an opportunity. He'd been a little concerned over his part of this fight, but it was a moot point now. Rock Lee, Maito Gai, and the Kumo Jounin, Himunari Akatachi, were on the other side of the assassin and the blonde lost track of them for a minute. He was gobsmacked, watching the fluid movements of the Hyuuga, impressed. He'd gotten much better since their fight at the Chunin exams.

Naruto was aching to test himself, and once he'd moved into position, shared a knowing look with Sakura. They couldn't see Sasuke anymore, but that was fine, considering he wasn't doing this next part with them anyway.

Soundlessly, Naruto created several clones and then transformed them into the unknown assassin. This was too easy, at least on that part. He sent the clones in, keeping himself out of the way as he too transformed. Sasuke's ghost images appeared suddenly –they were literally like shadows that had been cast against a solid wall, except they seemed to move with a mind of their own. He knew they held no physical mass, so they Naruto out. Knowing about the blonde's fear, Sasuke had deliberately nicknamed them "chakra ghosts".

They darted in between the combatants as Naruto's transformed clones attacked everyone but the assassin. It was chaos, and the real Naruto waited impatiently as they were whittled down (he couldn't attack the assassin yet, considering that would give their plan away, but he was looking as confused as Team Guy).

Meanwhile, Sakura and Naruto were both throwing kunai toward the assassin, much like the rain ninja had done to them during the Chunin exams, in the forest of death.

Finally however, the dissipation of the transformed shadow clones showed that the assassin was the only one left standing and Sasuke felt gratified – Neji's Byakugan had not seen through the façade. Kitsúne charged into the fight now, but Sakura kept her distance, keeping up the thrown kunai routine as Naruto and Sasuke attacked the already tired ninja trained assassin.

The assassin swung his sword in an arc toward Naruto; up close, the blonde noted the blade was beautifully engraved, like it had once belonged to a noble, or prince. On instinct, he reached out a hand toward it, his grip fastening on the hilt, and pulled. The assassin was thrown off balance by this move, stopping his advance and pivoting too slowly to avoid Naruto's grab for his sword.

'_I'll probably have to fight teme for the damn thing next,' _he thought glumly.

Sasuke took the distraction as an advantage and came charging toward the assassin, slamming into the ugly brute, allowing Naruto to snatch the sword before the ugly brute could get a better hold of it. The assassin's build was larger than expected, but he inevitably fell to the relentless assault on his person. This battle was over. Sakura jumped forward, checking to make sure their friends and the Kumo ninja weren't in any immediate danger.

"Idiot," she snapped at Naruto, after checking on their quarry. "You weren't supposed to _kill_ him."

He poked tongue at her. "The reward said 'dead or alive', _Sa-ku-ra_!"

"Well, you're still an idiot, _Na-ru-to_!"

Leaning heavily on his new sword from overusing his chakra, Naruto decided not to anger the temperamental Kunoichi while he was in such a delicate position and instead pointed a finger toward Neji. "Kicks ass, doesn't he? He took out all of my clones by himself."

"They've all improved," Sakura said wistfully.

Naruto groaned. "Do you think you should alter their memories Sakura?"

"No, I wouldn't even try. They're elite ninja Naruto," she snapped when he looked ready to debate this, "and if they break the genjutsu, which is more likely to happen than not, it'll only draw more suspicion to us."

"She's right," Sasuke said absentmindedly. "But we should at least make sure no enemy ninja will accidentally happen upon their unconscious forms, otherwise they're dead anyway."

He stared at the sword in Naruto's hand as he spoke and the blonde now held it protectively to his chest. "Out of it teme, I snatched it, so it's mine."

"And what are you going to do with an ōdachi?" Sakura asked. "It's a difficult sword to maintain for a knucklehead."

Naruto stared down at the beautiful creation. Now that he wasn't fighting to snatch it away from the now dead assassin, he took the time to really admire the filigree on the hilt and the blade itself (not to mention the religious inscriptions). His eyes flickered over the edge of the blade, remembering that the only time he'd seen an ōdachi this decorative, it had merely been a ceremonial sword.

In battle, an ōdachi was typically used on horseback, due to its length not being appropriate for in close combat, but ninja were trained with multiple weapons, and they were taught that a longer sword actually had an advantage if against an opponent with a shorter blade. Naruto wasn't very good with swords, only shorter blades like kunai, tanto, kodachi…

He sighed. "Fine, but I get the next weapon."

He glanced at Sakura, who shook her head to show she didn't want it, and then tossed the ōdachi to Sasuke, who caught it easily. The Uchiha was mesmerised by the blade; he'd always liked the idea of carrying around a sword and this blade was definitely interesting enough to warrant his attention. Swords were his favourite weapon.

X X X

The dust was settling when Neji Hyuuga roused. He was the first to open his eyes without any clue as to the time that had passed. It couldn't have been more than a few minutes, but there were also no signs of anything in the immediate vicinity other than himself, his team, and the Kumo ninja. Slowly, they joined him in the realm of the conscious, all looking puzzled at the strange events that had befallen them. Neji's Byakugan had seen through it however, even if he hadn't understood _what_ he was seeing. It had been a genjutsu, but he hadn't seen the assassin cast it.

He looked around: their quarry had completely disappeared.

The Kumo Chunin were hurt, the Jounin bore a few scratches, and when the two teams went their separate ways, it was only the Hyuuga who thought over what had just happened, not feeling remotely like he'd done anything wrong. Lee and Guy were lamenting that the power of youth had failed them, and the assassin had gotten away, and with no sign as to his destination. He wouldn't fall for the same tricks again, so for now, this mission was over. And while Tenten looked quietly downcast at their apparent failure, Neji knew better.

He stared out over the woods around them, following his team mates as they found the path that would lead them out of the land of frost. It wasn't something he'd have expected to happen, but it had happened nonetheless. Neji stopped walking.

"Neji?" Tenten asked immediately. "Are you okay?"

He shook his head slowly. "Tenten, I…"

She smiled knowingly, her hand resting on his upper arm. "I know: I feel the same way too. I could've sworn we did everything right and–"

"We did," he said defensively.

Guy and Lee stared at him, infuriatingly silent.

"What do you mean?" His brunette Kunoichi team mate asked, worried by the strange look on Neji's face.

"The Kumo ninjas missed it because they didn't have the Byakugan, but…" he trailed off thoughtfully. Neji knew they were alone, so he felt confident that they wouldn't be overheard.

"What are you saying, Neji?" Guy asked.

Neji glanced at Tenten's worried expression before answering. "There's only one explanation I can think of, and that's that there was someone else there during that fight. They were the ones who made off with the assassin."

X X X

**A/N: Sorry if that felt anticlimactic, but I had no intention of dragging the fight over to the next chapter. I've been so unfocused with a lot of things lately and this combined with other "issues" have resulted in a re-examining of my priorities, but this chapter is done and my favourite is up next. Maybe it'll get me out of my bad mood. ^_^**


	8. The Mistake

**Author's Notes: So here we are: this is the beginning of Kitsúne's end… I think. Well, the story is finally getting a kick in the ass anyway. Make of that what you will. ;)  
>Read, love, and review! ^_^<strong>

Chapter Eight. The Mistake.

It was two days later; they had their bounty, and were currently mingling with a civilian caravan that was bound for lightning country, with swords-for-hire who followed the strict code of honour of bushido. These people didn't seem bothered by the presence of Kitsúne, even if they didn't recognise them as ninja, and had only glanced at them long enough to take in their appearances before the caravan had moved out. And as Kitsúne had discovered from that stupid old tea shop owner in the land of rice paddies, the ninja of Kumo were "cleaning house" with rogue ninja in their country as their numbers had risen vaguely in the past few months. This was the best way to enter Lightning country without incurring unnecessary fights.

But they were still in the land of frost, though only a short way from the easterly border. As long as they kept their chakra hidden and maintained their cover, they would be fine.

Sasuke still had the assassin's blade – he thought back to the bulking man. Immediately after they'd left the clearing in which Team Guy and those Kumo ninja had been, Naruto had started on him about who was going to claim the reward. He fought with Sakura over it so loudly that Sasuke had grabbed the ugly brute and stalked off with the body, making an executive decision to do it himself instead.

Naruto's incessant whining had gotten on his last nerve.

Glancing around the caravan and ignoring the way Sakura was talking with one of the samurai, Sasuke let his mind wonder, mulling over who the assassin might've stolen the ōdachi from. The craftsmanship of said sword was exquisite. It wasn't just strikingly beautiful, but both lightweight and deadly sharp. He had the strangest feeling there weren't many things it couldn't cut through. So of course, he was debating best how to figure out where it had originally come from. Naruto was still sore over his possession of it, but what had the knucklehead expected? If he didn't even know how to use it properly, then he shouldn't bother even holding it. Sasuke realised he'd been selfish, just expecting to have it, but he couldn't help himself. He was drawn to it. The ōdachi was an impressive sword, and made him feel like he could take down anything and anyone.

A day's travel from the border to Lightning country, they made camp for the night. Sasuke made a point to drag Sakura from the samurai she'd been conversing with, gripping her possessively as she tried to get out of his grip.

"Sasuke…"

They disappeared into a tent, leaving Naruto to sort out their provisions. He glowered in their direction.

'_Fucking horny rabbits.'_

X X X

Travelling at the pace of a snail was getting on Sasuke's nerves. The next morning had started so sleepily and now he was wide awake and wanting to move _faster_. His body was ignoring his common sense and itching to just leave these unfamiliar people behind and head to Kumogakure as a ninja. It was making his thoughts wander dangerously, his hand jerking haphazardly as he tried to avoid grasping the handle of his ōdachi, so as to not look antagonistic to the civilians in the caravan.

Sakura and Naruto were both giving him a wide berth, sensing his unease – sometimes the blonde dobe wasn't as stupid as he looked after all.

But eventually, a combination of his increasing nerves and the strange looks thrown his way by the old man in charge of the caravan made the decision for him; his hand grasped the sword both possessively and defensively. Civilians carried weapons only rarely, and it might've looked out of place if it wasn't for the fact that the group they were travelling with had made frequent trips to the sage temples, most recently the fire temple. The monks were awesome in combat, and even occasionally taught civilians their ways. So Sasuke wasn't looking for hidden Shinobi when he activated his Sharingan, unable to get rid of the nagging feeling that this caravan was being followed.

It was the other reason, besides a need for speed (they needed to get to Kumo _this_ century), that he was feeling so frustrated.

The swords-for-hire were watching the trees lining the path discreetly, but Sasuke saw no concern in their eyes or on their faces. Maybe he was being paranoid, but that state of mind had saved his life more times than not. It was best to be safe. Sakura and Naruto were bickering in undertones over their food supply and as Sasuke glanced over toward them he heard a sharp intake of breath. The old man who was in charge of the caravan, Ikomu, was staring at him.

There was a moment of silence and cursing his own stupidity, Sasuke killed his kekkei genkai. But it was too late. Everyone in this region was on the alert for unknown Shinobi and he'd just given himself away.

The old man screamed out. "Ninja!"

Sakura and Naruto looked up as the swords-for-hire drew their weapons, lunging at Sasuke. He sighed, not turning his Sharingan back on. Anger at his own stupidity was amplified by Naruto's loud voice. "Teme! What did you do?"

Ever the idiot.

Sasuke knocked back the first samurai and pushed Sakura out of the way when she jumped up to stop him. The old man had seen his Sharingan, and even though Sasuke knew it was his own fault, he also knew _he_ had to deal with this. Some things couldn't just be taken back. Itachi had taught him that.

"Sasuke!" Sakura hissed, but he ignored her and she was forced to spin on her heels, throwing her arms up to stop an incoming attack from a samurai dressed hired swordsman. She had her own opponents to deal with.

Suddenly, Sasuke felt his body jerk of its own accord. There was chakra in the air that didn't belong to him, Sakura or Naruto – he reluctantly activated his Sharingan to look for the source of it and found it in Ikomu, the old man.

He was sneering down at Sasuke, as though the young man had just killed his family, his pets and his closest friends.

'_Must be the Sharingan.'_

It had that affect on people.

So the old man knew a few jutsu. Sasuke was actually glad about that and decided that this needed to be sorted without altering memories. But still, the Uchiha couldn't help but be angry; not at himself – not anymore. The fates were laughing at him, he knew. This wasn't going to end pretty.

Naruto jumped away from thrown shuriken and almost ran into Sakura. He twisted his head to see what Sasuke was doing and his eyes widened at the maniacal look on his face. Why the _hell_ had he activated his Sharingan?

"Sakura," he said, "teme's about to slaughter the lot of them."

"I know."

Naruto watched in horror as Sasuke jumped from his position and came crashing down on Ikomu; the sword in his hands slicing downward through the air and impaling the old man. Ikomu's torso was all but ripped in half so swiftly, there was no blood on the blade. Sakura screamed out at Sasuke but a ringing in his ears deafened him as he watched the body fall in a mixed kind of fascination. He couldn't believe he'd just done that.

The air around him whipped his face as Naruto and Sakura took care of the rest of them.

He'd killed before today, they all had, but an uneasiness settled in his stomach as Sasuke realised this was the first time he'd enjoyed it. Snapping out of his self induced reverie, he mentally slapped himself.

'_I think I'm going insane.'_

He had no idea what made him do it, but in the next moment, Sasuke pulled out a kunai, having sheathed the ōdachi, and moved toward the man who had attacked him without provocation but seemingly with reason. Ignoring Sakura's plea, Sasuke carved the symbol for Kitsúne on the bodies of the dead, seemingly not caring that some of them were indeed civilian. He was more unhinged by it than he was letting on, but kept up this façade. What else was he supposed to do? But unlike his team mates, who were looking at him with mixed expressions, Sasuke didn't think this one mistake was going to come back to haunt them. As stupid and angry as he felt for his impulsive reaction, this felt like the end of it to him.

Still, everyone had something or someone that enjoyed nagging them…

"What, are you stupid?" Naruto ranted. "Why did we have to kill them?"

Sasuke pointedly ignored the furious blonde as Sakura bent to examine the sash the hired samurai had been wearing. They'd been travelling inconspicuously, so she hadn't noticed it until now – it gave her goose bumps. It had an official seal on it, and she recognised it.

"Sasuke," she whispered. "That man calling himself Ikomu was a noble."

X X X

**A/N: Yep, this is the chapter the summary refers to. You'll find out what the deal with it is soon.  
>I want to update faster, so the next chapter won't take as long. ^_^<strong>


	9. Shared Silence

**Author's Notes: Yay! An update! ;)  
>Read, love, and review! ^_^<strong>

Chapter Nine. Shared Silence.

Sometimes he felt like he was someone else, like another person was living his life for him. There was a darkness inside of him that he couldn't explain, that he couldn't excuse and that he couldn't control. The stench of his mistake permeated his senses for days after Sasuke Uchiha had killed the brother of the fire daimyo.

He'd awoken from a dream-like state only to realise that he hadn't been imagining things. And no matter how he'd felt at the time, or the excuses he'd told himself in those moments of bloodlust, he hadn't _meant_ to kill the old man. He wanted to be better than that, having left Konoha not as an act of disloyalty, but to follow the faint lead that Orochimaru had left behind.

In retrospect, three Genin who had just lost their loved ones and were barely out of the academy weren't going to be able to take down the Sannin. But really, killing Orochimaru wasn't something they often talked about. The subject was raised so rarely that there had been no actual discussion on _how_ they would do it. They had never entertained the idea that _they_ would be a match for the snake. But Sasuke wouldn't stay in Konoha knowing that hunting down that monster wasn't even being considered. He couldn't walk the streets of Konoha, pretend it wasn't going to happen again, and never try to do anything about it.

The final straw in his decision had been partly overhearing the elders, but also discovering that Orochimaru had stolen Uchiha relics, not to mention the Uchiha clan (or what was left of it) was the main reason for his attack.

So he _had_ to get stronger, he _had_ to find the snake and kill him, even if it was the last thing he ever did. But Konoha was rebuilding too slowly and everyone was needed in the reconstruction efforts. It left him feeling useless, fidgety, and frustrated. These were never good combinations in him. He wasn't normally so rash or impatient, and the shift in his perspective, his realisation that staying in Konoha was just hampering his desire for revenge, was a great motivation to leave. He'd often wondered what would've happened if Sakura hadn't realised what he was about to do and insisted on coming with him. She was more brains than brawn back in the academy, but after their numerous training sessions together, he'd seen a kind of strength in her that no-one else had bothered to look for. It might've had something to do with why he'd eventually given in to her romantic advances.

And then there was Naruto. He understood the baka's desire not to be left out, but never got how he could turn his back on his dream to one day become Hokage. If he'd stayed in Konoha, he might've one day accomplished that. It was impossible now. That blonde idiot confused him to no end.

But now, with the sun setting and the dark undergrowth of surrounding woodland as his destination for the night, Sasuke didn't know what he wanted anymore. He didn't know if there was any point in this quest for revenge. They'd been on the road for six years, found out more about Orochimaru's movements than anyone else in Konoha, but were they _strong_ enough? His Sharingan was powerful, but he worried it wouldn't be enough when the time came. What they needed was more _power_.

He glanced backward discreetly as the sounds of early evening insects filled the tense silence around him. Just like they had with the caravan, Sakura and Naruto were giving Sasuke a wide berth. She'd tried to approach the Uchiha but he wasn't responsive, making her worry even more for him. They needed to get to Kumo, get this mission over and done with, and then take some time off. Maybe even splurge on paying to occupy an entire bathhouse to themselves for awhile. They definitely needed _something_ to soak away this stench around them.

Sakura remembered the first time Sasuke had killed unnecessarily – he'd gotten his Sharingan before they left Konoha, but the first time he'd used it after going rogue, he'd killed without thinking. The pinkette had had nightmares for weeks about those screams. Since then, he'd only let his bloodlust overwhelm his rational mind a few times, and it still terrified her, what his Sharingan was capable of. But this time, it hadn't been his kekkei genkai – he'd used the sword to kill the old man. Sakura had spent the last couple of days watching him silently, occasionally brushing his arm in a gentle, comforting way, with no response.

This was definitely different from the other times. Maybe he'd finally snapped…

So she cried herself to sleep, silently of course – she'd long given up on the weak Sakura who wore her heart on her sleeve. Naruto wasn't fairing any better, having seemingly lost his voice and didn't even try to approach Sasuke. He kept close to Sakura however, only moving away when a particularly nasty glare from Sasuke (glinted red) was directed at him. He just wanted to comfort the only person in Kitsúne that wasn't _possessed_.

Neither Sakura nor Sasuke knew about the Kyuubi… Naruto had used its chakra occasionally, but only when pushed to. He wanted to tell them, but every time the chance presented itself, fear clutched at his chest. After all, he wouldn't be surprised if they wanted nothing to do with him afterward. Orochimaru may have engineered the attack on the leaf that ruined their lives, but the hand that had been the coup de grâce had been a jinchuriki.

X X X

They looked more sombre than she'd have thought possible. Tsunade surveyed Team Guy in the wake of their mission report, her eyes lingering on Neji, who was the only one looking slightly furious. Someone powerful had fooled his Byakugan (even though it had only succeeded because Neji had never seen that genjutsu before) and the Hokage thought immediately of Sasuke Uchiha's Sharingan. She kept this to herself however, as it was still considered top secret – rumours abound about many rogue Shinobi but some facts were easier to piece together than others. There had been a string of people with memory loss in wave country six months ago, and in the land of wind several weeks before that.

Tsunade had long believed that genjutsu was more destructive than most ninjutsu as the mind was a delicate thing – far more difficult to heal than a normal injury. It was why she took it more seriously – after all, one of the most powerful clans to ever exist excelled in genjutsu.

'_Well, they __used__ to.'_

She sighed. And if Sasuke Uchiha had something to do with what was going on, there wasn't much she could do about it, especially if he'd progressed with his Sharingan enough to affect the battleground in the way Neji had describe. Fortunately, even though they hadn't heard or seen from any of the former members of Team Seven for six years, their motivations had nothing to do with harming Konohagakure.

Shizune knocked on the Hokage's door, waited for the "enter" from Tsunade and then bowed. "I have Kakashi Hatake for you ma'am, as requested."

"Thank you Shizune."

Guy greeted his eternal rival jovially, re-sparking some of his normally upbeat disposition, and Kakashi just sighed deeply. He really wasn't in the mood for one of Guy's speeches, and tuned out as the spandex clad man started on about how his youth had betrayed him and having this eternal rival around was sure to bring it back. (Okay… so the tuning out hadn't actually _worked_ this time – he was getting old after all.)

"Kakashi," Tsunade said. "Fetch Kurenai Yuhi's team. She's taking some time off so you'll be her replacement on squad eight."

'_Why couldn't Shizune have just done that?'_ "Yes Lady Hokage," Kakashi shunshined out and Gai frowned.

"Are you sure it's wise sending out another team?" He asked.

"The perpetrators know our faces," Tenten said, her eyes on Neji however – he was watching and listening but not making any input.

"Yes, but they'll still stand out as Konoha ninja, so in the end, what does that matter?"

"Guy," Tsunade said, "you're not being left out. I have a separate mission for you. Just wait until Kakashi returns with the others," she added as he moved to interrupt.

Tenten kept her worried eyes on Neji the entire time, but it didn't take Kakashi long to track down Kiba Inuzuka, Shino Aburame and Hinata Hyuuga. Tsunade stood up and moved in front of her desk, leaning back on it wearily. She was older than she looked of course, and right now, she was _feeling_ it.

"Are we to move as two teams?" Lee asked, looking very excited about that possibility.

"No. I've sent a message to Kumo," Tsunade said, "and their informants have placed the rogues somewhere between the southern border to the land of frost and lightning country. While Team Kakashi–" (Kiba growled insolently at this title) "–goes ahead to scout out the area, I want Team Guy to stay in their shadow. You are to follow them and not make yourself known unless you encounter resistance."

"Lady Hokage?" Hinata asked, bowing slightly. "What about the rumours of Kitsúne being in the land of frost? Is this connected?"

Tsunade exchanged a worried look with Shizune. "Actually, you might encounter them. I've been putting together all the information we have of them and I think I've figured out who they are."

X X X

**A/N:  
>Not sure what to say. I've come to a cross roads with this fic and I have no idea exactly how many more chapters there will be, but I've gotten up to and including chapter 13 completely figured out, along with the final few, as well as the general flow of the story of the chapters in between. That should give you guys a little idea anyway. ^_^<strong>


	10. Just Forget the World

**Author's Notes: So, I was shuffling (literally) through my playlists while writing this chapter, and the song 'this is your life' by Switchfoot stood out. It made me think of Three's A Crowd: the feel for me at least, about the heart behind it. Just wanted to share that. Well, that and I think I've gotten better at writing lemons. ;)  
>Read, love, and review! ^_^ <strong>

Chapter Ten. Just Forget the World.

The gates of Kumogakure were not inviting. They loomed over Kitsúne like a foreboding shadow. But Sasuke didn't notice. He was too busy thinking about what they were going to do next, having decided that until Sakura and Naruto snapped out of their respective stupors, _he_ was going to be making unilateral decisions for them all. He'd had enough with wallowing in what had happened in the land of frost and was determined to just get on with their mission. Orochimaru hadn't been officially blamed for the attack on Konoha, but he had contacts in all the greatest hidden villages, and Kitsúne had heard about the one that owned a night club in Kumo.

His name was Sāmu… just Sāmu, no last name. It was probably a cover anyway. He was going to give them the answers they needed, whether he wanted to or not.

Sasuke stopped walking about ten minutes into their entry into Kumo. "I'm going to check out the night club… by myself."

Without turning around to hear their responses, he left Naruto and Sakura standing in the middle of a busy street. It wasn't exactly commerce central, but it wasn't Sunday either. Sakura bit her bottom lip, trying to decide whether or not to heed Sasuke's unspoken demand to leave him alone.

"Coming Sakura?" Naruto asked, tugging on her elbow gently.

She shook her head resolutely, her eyes still on Sasuke's retreating form. "You go ahead."

Naruto glanced in the direction Sasuke had gone and squeezed Sakura's hand affectionately. "Alright. I'll get two rooms at the Hakumatomi Tavern and leave yours and Sasuke's keys with reception."

"Thank you Naruto."

He grinned widely and winked at her. "See you in the morning!"

They had money to splurge now, having divided the reward money between them evenly. So this meant that Naruto was going to pay for both rooms, but Sakura made a mental note to make it up to him later. She started walking, moving quickly as she headed straight for the night club they'd heard about. Sasuke wasn't going to risk heading inside the premises without a preconceived plan, so Sakura looked for him in positions that gave veiled views of both entrances, finding him standing a mere four feet away from the alley entrance, just staring at a broken sign.

"Sasuke?"

He looked up at her and she half expected him to get angry and tell her off, but his face was sullen as she took his hand – for the first time in days he returned her affection and she smiled at him.

"Come on," she said. "We can check this place out later. Naruto's getting two rooms for us and it's almost sundown. You haven't been taking care of yourself."

She tugged on his hand gently, further surprised when he relented. She worried about him, but he knew she wasn't just mothering him. Sakura was in love with him. It didn't matter to her that he hadn't returned her words each time she uttered them, but sometimes it did bother her when he acted like he didn't care to, either way.

Hakumatomi Tavern wasn't too far away, so they walked there in comfortable silence; she was actually trying to think of something else to say, but didn't want to ruin the moment. He stayed silent as Sakura asked for the keys Naruto had promised to leave with reception; he made no sound as they walked up the internal staircase and down the hallway to Room 08, but had to be pulled into said room after hesitating on the threshold.

Sasuke wasted no time once they'd entered; his demeanour shifted immediately as he closed the door behind himself, and grabbed Sakura roughly. He needed this after what had happened. He kept telling himself the blood on his hands didn't matter, only the fact that right now, his hands were caressing the pinkette who haunted his wet dreams. He stripped her, pushing her backward onto the bed and climbed on top. He hovered over her, taking in her perfect form; his eyes lidded with lust when he realised she was already wet for him. Sakura worked on removing his clothes and he let her – she loved to disrobe him. Her hands ran over his torso, sliding down his body and gripped him tightly, working for a few moments to get him ready. Sasuke hissed at the contact, nestling between her thighs as she parted her legs.

"Sasuke," she whispered softly, now lifting both of her hands to cup his face. "I love you."

He answered her by crashing his lips to hers, thrusting his hips in a downward sweeping motion, and filling her completely. He didn't want to deal with any emotional bullshit right now, wanting only to release the tension building up inside of his body and unleashing it hard and fast.

Sasuke growled at the pinkette and lowered his face into the crook of her neck, concentrating on his sharp, powerful thrusts as the woman writhing underneath him let out an animalistic scream, the smell of sex rolling off of her driving him on. Her moaning and begging for more was erratic and escalating in volume as he pounded into her mercilessly. Neither of them cared what their "neighbours" would be thinking, what reprimand might be coming their way, nor the fact that the walls between each room were more than likely paper thin. The coiling heat and friction drove everything else out of their little world.

As she came down from her high and several orgasms, Sakura mused wearily: this wasn't quite what she had expected, since they were in a proper bed, but at least she wasn't pressed up against a tree, her skin raw against unrelenting bark. And it was like the last few days hadn't happened. Sasuke spent the rest of the night showing her he wanted her more than anything in the world.

X X X

As the sun was still setting, Team Kakashi met their contact in the land of frost who had some startling news – the brother of the fire daimyo had been assassinated. He'd already sent a message-nin to the Hokage about the incident and now, the feudal lords of both the fire nation and lightning country wanted the head or heads of whomever this group that called themselves Kitsúne really were.

Kakashi Hatake however, was not so impressed. How were they supposed to put out wanted posters on something or someone who by all accounts, doesn't really exist? But the daimyos wanted this handled by ninja only, so as the contact relayed all of this to them Shino sent some of his Kikaichū to Team Guy. This definitely changed things.

They were originally here to track the ninja or ninja group that caught the unknown assassin because anyone strong enough to do what had been done to fool a kekkei genkai as powerful as the Byakugan was definitely a force to be reckoned with. This could be some new rogue group, it could be Kitsúne… it could be anyone. It might even have been an ally. There was no telling.

But the possibility that the defeat of such a high skilled assassin by a random force being an immediate threat to Konoha was decidedly low. Kakashi wasn't going to waste time worrying about the possibilities.

Before doing anything else however, Team Kakashi settled on checking in at the pickup station that was reserved for the collection of bounties, ignoring the suspicious glances of the ragged head hunters watching them enter the one storey hotel-like building. Despite the roughneck atmosphere, the middle aged woman who greeted them from behind a reception desk looked anything but harsh. She smiled a forced smile, reminding the copy ninja of the Root members he would sometimes work with in his ANBU days.

"Picking up or bringing in?"

Kakashi sighed. The woman was one "withdraw or deposit" from sounding like a bank teller. "Looking for information," he said, straightening his hitai-ate unnecessarily.

The simple motion brought the woman's attention silently to the fact that this wasn't about reward collecting. The miscellaneous pickup stations all over the ninja nations had "understandings" with several hidden villages when it came to trading information on the bounty hunters, the criminals… you name it.

The woman's demeanour shifted quickly; her eyes now reflected sincerity – she dealt with head hunters every day, but it was occasionally nice to speak with people who didn't grunt out their demands.

"Who picked up the reward for the bounty called the unknown assassin?" Kakashi asked.

The lady pulled out a folder and checked her list of names, remembering once she'd found the correct entry (no name) who it was who had collected that reward. "A young man… oh yes, I remember him now. He was ever so polite."

"No name?" Hinata asked softly.

"Oh no dear, a lot of them don't converse much and they just want their money. Is there a problem?"

"No problem ma'am," Kiba said automatically.

"We just need to know, is there anything else you can remember about him?" The copy ninja asked.

The woman rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Well, he was a cutie: dark hair, darker eyes. Frankly, I was surprised he'd brought that man in all by himself."

"Thank you," Hinata said, bowing, and they left her to her thoughts.

"Shouldn't we get a better description off of her?" Kiba asked.

"No need," Shino said. "Even a highly skilled, singular Shinobi would not have been able to take that assassin out. If he wasn't alone, which is more probable than not, then he had come alone to pick up the bounty for a reason."

"Shino is right," Kakashi said. "A normal squad would go in together, to ensure accuracy on the paperwork for the authorities. It's law. This was more than likely a rogue ninja, or someone who simply wishes to keep under the radar, for whatever reason."

He put the fact that it could have passed as a fuzzy description of Sasuke Uchiha out of his mind… for now.

"So the man who picked up the bounty might have cast a henge, or transformation jutsu?" Kiba asked.

"Exactly."

The Inuzuka snarled. "What a waste of time."

"Not if it was Kitsúne," Hinata said softly, her musings going unheard by all but Kakashi.

He glanced at the Hyuuga, thinking. If Tsunade was right about who Kitsúne was, this could get ugly, and fast. Despite their good relations with Kumogakure, she'd ordered both leaf teams not to reveal her suspicions. They were after all, just suspicions – there was no proof. This was why Team Guy was supposed to hold back: they needed to unravel the identity of this supposed group before heading to lightning country – they now had an appointment to keep with the Raikage.

But, if the Hokage was right, this mission was more personal than political.

X X X

**A/N: Yay! Longest chapter so far! Actually, not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing, lol. ;)  
>Well anyway, next time is more into the backbone of the plot of the story. ^_^ <strong>


	11. Job Satisfaction

**Author's Notes:  
>Sorry about the late update. Migraines were out in force, my newest one-shot wouldn't leave me alone… you get the idea. ;) Anyway, read, love, and review! ^_^ <strong>

Chapter Eleven. Job Satisfaction.

Silken Heat was the name of the most erotic night club in Kumogakure. Unlike in other hidden villages, it was both an _underground_ kind of place, as well as high reaching. It wasn't like ninja frequented this dark, rickety establishment – or if they did, it was with a very skilled henge or something of the sort – but there were rumours of Shinobi connections with not only the owner but quite a number of the employees. The clientele varied, despite this, and Silken Heat was nothing if not adaptive to the _needs_ of their regulars.

The nightclub was also soaked in the pungent smells of smoke, alcohol and whores… Sasuke Uchiha could tell a lady from a whore, on or off the job – whores had a distinctively nauseating stench to them. He would never understand how men and women alike could spend inordinate amounts of time in the company of someone that stank, _constantly_. The persistent smell of sex was mixed in with sweat and the odour of whatever establishment they worked at. Sasuke only liked the smell of sex on Sakura. He didn't like other people's body odour anymore than his own, and being surrounded by it made him want to dry heave.

Sitting three feet from him on a love seat, Naruto Uzumaki was in an entirely different frame of mind – the _baka_ was enjoying the attention from the lap dancers. When a particularly busty woman sauntered over to them, Sasuke quickly shook his head and waved her away when she eyed him off – she perked up a moment later having noticed the excited looking blonde near him. So it was as Naruto was receiving his fifth lap dance for the night that a familiar face finally strode onto the catwalk.

Sasuke had been against this. He was angry at her for suggesting it, at Naruto for going along with it and at himself for not thinking of a better alternative to shut them both up. Sakura Haruno was a beautiful woman, and incredibly intoxicating as she danced like a professional. The pole at the end of the catwalk was a whore; his girlfriend was making out with it, moving with the music, and raking her eyes over the audience. Her emerald orbs hesitated as they met angry dark eyes and then swept away for their own safety.

And despite his reservations about this, her _moves_ and suggestive swaying was giving him a hard on. She wasn't required to go nude, and if it _had_ been, the owner would be _dead_ the moment Sasuke set eyes on him. But Sakura was stripping, the tight, glittering tube top slipping off first as she looped her free arm around the pole. Cat calling from the male audience seemed to spur her on and she winked at them, throwing the top into the audience.

Meanwhile, Naruto was trying desperately not to look at the stage – even the busty woman dancing about his lap couldn't completely distract from the fact that Sakura was dancing and swivelling around a pole, wearing almost nothing. He blushed profusely, turning his head to keep Sasuke from seeing, but was grateful that for once, the jealous boyfriend of the pinkette was focusing all his resentment on said girl. He had _not_ liked the idea when Sakura proposed it a day ago and he sure as hell hadn't warmed up to it since then.

Naruto supposed that Sasuke was just worried that one of these drunken idiots would try to make a grab for her. She was only doing this because the owner of this establishment rarely came out of his office or whatever hidey hole he'd dug himself into, and the only way they knew for sure would work was if he thought to take advantage of a new female recruit. Sasuke hadn't been able to find him despite his "talents" for doing so (and refrained from going too far based on the rumours that ninja did in fact frequent this club), which was understandable considering they only knew of this guy via his cover name and reputation. Luring him out was the next best thing – Sāmu was a contact for Orochimaru and was probably using the club for recruiting subjects for the snake's "experiments". They had to know for sure, but the more immediate concern was _how_ he contacted the Sannin.

So Sasuke had been outvoted (the voting did seem to be going awry lately) and grudgingly did nothing to physically stop Sakura. She had been very excited about this all day, her exuberance not remotely contagious, and one would think, looking up at the pinkette in that moment as she shimmied out of her short shorts, that she was on top of the world.

Sasuke made a mental note to bring this up with her later and swivelled his attention away from her as the door to the upstairs offices opened. He kept it in his peripherals, watching as a man he didn't recognise stood still, his eyes raking appreciatively over the new pink haired dancer.

Was that him?

Naruto glanced at him as well and caught Sakura's eyes. She took the hint, finished her routine without losing her underwear (much to the displeasure of the crowd) and sauntered off stage. Sasuke stood immediately, ignoring the blonde as Naruto who was now trying to untangle himself from a busty redhead, and moved methodically through the crowd. He didn't want to spook the guy, but wouldn't let him out of his sight either. The man was talking to one of the other female workers and she nodded, smiling, and then turned toward the backstage. It looked like she was collecting the new recruit for some time with the boss. Naruto caught up to Sasuke a moment later and watched with him as a now fully clothed Sakura was led into the owner's office.

"Come on," Naruto said, "there should be a back entrance."

Silently, Sasuke let him take the lead and looked around the club to make sure they weren't being watched. His desire to beat the living crap out of that man was surprisingly extinguished the moment he and Naruto barged into the small, dingy room from the back alley entrance. Sakura had the man by the hair and was belting him in already, calling him a pervert, a scoundrel… basically anything and everything that came to mind. She didn't even notice she now had an audience as she clenched her fist one last time, hitting the gangly man across the jaw and knocking him unconscious.

X X X

Naruto was making cooing noises, like one did to a baby, his face right in the man's line of sight as Sāmu slowly woke, and wearing his cheesiest grin.

"You're such a child, Naruto," Sakura said, leaning in closer to their captive. "He's not a baby."

"He just cringed like one."

"Only because I'm scarier than you."

"Pfft, I could've kicked his ass just fine!"

"You don't get to have all the fun, Naruto."

"Will you two be quiet, you're giving me a headache."

They stepped away from this Sāmu character at Sasuke's scolding.

"Sheesh teme," Naruto said sarcastically. "Calm down." He pointed to the brown haired man and grinned. "You'll scare the baby."

They were in Naruto's room in Hakumatomi Tavern, and Sāmu was tied to a chair, in the centre of the small living room. Honestly, they preferred not to conduct such affairs in places so easily broken into, but in this case, it couldn't be helped. Sasuke had put up a genjutsu so that once this guy started screaming, no-one would hear him outside this room. He still felt oddly exposed doing this here, but this was important.

"Where is Orochimaru?" He asked, leaning in toward the prisoner.

The man just grinned maniacally, as though he knew all the secrets of the universe and being captured was _fun_.

"Just hit him," Naruto growled. "Or use your Sharingan. Don't waste time, unless you want me to–"

Sasuke cut him off with a glare, grabbed Sāmu by the hair, and spoke venomously. "Tell me where your master is or you'll leave this world screaming for death."

The man remained quiet, his focus intent on the now blazing Sharingan and realisation dawning on his features. He screamed at the feel of a kunai digging into his ligaments, thrashed as Sasuke twisted the blade, scraping against nerve endings without severing them.

Naruto paced in the background and Sakura sat wearily on the floor. As far as she was concerned, Sasuke was enjoying this _too_ much. And he kept at it, whispered his demands and adding pressure to the man's body. Sāmu whimpered out a few incoherent words and then fell silent. Sasuke was careful not to get the man's blood on the floor, so he didn't open any veins, but his clothes were ripped and bloodied nonetheless. He pulled away, allowing the servant of the snake Sannin a few moments to compose himself.

Eventually, Sāmu seemed to recover his wits, but instead of looking up fearfully at the Uchiha, the gangly man was laughing… Sasuke grabbed the back of his hair again, roughly. "What's so funny, freak?"

The man croaked a few times before managing the words, laced with his mirth at the situation. "You're worried about Orochimaru, seriously?"

Sāmu continued to laugh, even after Sasuke struck him across the face again, and fell to the floor, dragging the chair he was tied to down with him. His amusement was pissing the Uchiha off and if they didn't need his information, he'd have killed him already.

"Spit it out," Naruto snarled.

Sāmu looked up at them, his eyes resting on Sakura, probably still thinking about the _fun_ he'd been robbed of when she attacked him. "If I were you, I'd be less concerned about Lord Orochimaru, and more worried about the Raikage."

Sasuke snarled. "_Why_?"

The man let out a high pitched giggle. "He knows who you are Kitsúne, and he wants you, _real_ bad."

X X X

**A/N:  
>Okay, a bit dark on the whole torture thing, but the M rating is here for a reason… not so much the lemons – I wasn't sure until I decided on the 1<strong>**st**** one (citrus, really) that they were going to happen. Anyway, Love and review! ^_^**

**Love it or hate it, it is what it is. Love me or hate me, I am who I am. But for every gift of love you give, you'll receive one in turn.  
>– mine, don't steal. ;P<strong>


	12. Calculated Risks

**Author's Notes:  
>There's no pole dancing here, sorry. ;) <strong>

**Oh yeah, and I do have every intention of putting more in about how Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto left Konoha originally, how Kitsúne came about, etc., but not yet. There are just a few things to get out of the way first. Anyway, read, love, and review! ^_^ **

Chapter Twelve. Calculated Risks.

The buildings were just as he remembered from the last time he'd visited this hidden village. He'd been here years ago, but still Kumogakure was the very image of a photograph that had not aged. He knew that the inner workings however, had become much more insidious, what with the Raikage executing rogue ninja on sight, and causing unrest in the nobles of the village to stir support for his seemingly unending campaigns.

Kakashi Hatake didn't bother visiting one of the taverns – their orders were to go straight to see the Raikage. Several ANBU greeted them at the entrance however.

"We have orders to take you to the Raikage," one of them said.

Usually, Kakashi didn't care about the curt tones of ANBU, no matter what village they came from, but there was something off about this one. His body language indicated he was tense, and he didn't wait for a response before darting away. Team Kakashi followed obediently and the taichou glanced backward – all four of his companions nodded slightly. They kept pace with the ANBU, who led them to the Raikage's building; their masked companion promptly showed them to a waiting room, and then left without a word.

Kakashi, Hinata, Shino, Kiba, and Akamaru ambled into the room, not reacting to the long couch, coffee table, and small refreshments. Well, at least they wouldn't be starving anytime soon. Kakashi moved to the wall beneath the only window in the room and leant against it, a picture of calm. Team Guy wouldn't be very far away, but methods of entering other hidden villages without being seen were limited. More than likely, they were still outside the village, keeping watch from there. Kakashi wasn't going to worry about it – as long as they weren't caught, it didn't matter if they came in or not.

After a few minutes, the wordlessly agreed upon silence was broken.

"Why are we waiting?" Kiba asked. "The Hokage never has foreign ninja personally escorted to her only to have them wait on her."

"The Raikage is probably very busy," Hinata said soothingly.

But she agreed with him. There was definitely something going on – that escort had been too abrupt. Kiba glanced at her, sharing a knowing look. They'd worked on the same team for years, so he knew how to read between the lines of her carefree comments. She wasn't as naïve as people believed. Shino, for his part, was examining every inch of the room, looking for the surveillance in the room. It was obvious they were being watched, and possibly listened to. Fortunately, his team mates had assumed as much and weren't saying anything out of the ordinary. Hinata engaged Kiba in one of his usual talks about dog hygiene and his and Akamaru's recent training exercises – the Inuzuka was always lively around Hinata. Meanwhile, Kakashi had pulled out a book and to anyone who'd never spent any time around him he seemed unconcerned about the unusual treatment they'd received. But the copy ninja was anything but blasé – he couldn't think of any reason the Raikage would detain them without speaking to them, unless… he forced himself to remain impassive as his eye slid over the same passage of his Icha Icha for the third time. He didn't make a habit of pretending to read before, but right now, he couldn't even concentrate on his favourite book.

The answer to their unspoken questions was suddenly crystal clear: this was about Kitsúne.

X X X

Sāmu was unconscious. Sasuke unclenched his fist, wiping absentmindedly at the blood on his knuckles. This wasn't what they'd been hoping to hear. It was supposed to be simple: get into Kumogakure, interrogate Orochimaru's spy, and then leave without getting noticed. There was little to no chance that the snake Sannin was anywhere near the village, so they had no reason to stay. But despite the threat of the Raikage, Sasuke could only think of one course of action – keep to the mission. They would just have to be more careful about who saw them. Sāmu hadn't known if the Raikage knew that Kitsúne was currently in Kumo, so they had a little time – if the stupid fool thought they were in his village, they would have been caught already, and not walking free.

"Sakura," Sasuke said. "Wipe his memory."

She frowned. Sāmu was a ninja – granted, a low rate one – but the chances he could break the memory jutsu, or that Orochimaru might discover what had been done to him, was too great. But as she moved to complain, Sasuke interrupted.

"He's bait," he said evenly.

"Bait?" Naruto asked, worried. "Orochimaru isn't going to come running to protect this guy."

"I know that, dobe. But we can follow him, find out where he goes, who he talks to, and hopefully to wherever he goes when he contacts the snake. We can't do that if he's dead, now can we?"

"No need to get stroppy."

Sakura shook her head at them. "Well, if we're going to traipse through Kumo after this guy, we'll need some actual disguises this time."

"Disguises?" Naruto asked, perking up.

Sakura laughed. "What is it with you and dressing up?"

He shrugged. "I like it."

"Like a plastic doll," Sasuke said, quirking an eyebrow when the blonde poked tongue at him. "As long as it's not like that outfit you wanted to wear back in Hashirōn Town."

Naruto pulled a face. "That place was cool, with all the gambling stalls. I wish we could've stayed a bit longer," he said wistfully. "A Sari, some short pants, and voila, no-one knows I'm a ninja!"

"No-one was making that mistake anyway, dobe."

"Shut it! My clothes are awesome! As is my fashion sense, teme."

"Not to mention your clown shoes," Sakura added, giggling.

"Whatever."

Sasuke sighed, now staring at their unconscious captive, his hand grasping his sword firmly. The ōdachi had remained sheathed during the entire interrogation. It was another reason he'd been annoyed back in that night club – not being able to take it with him. He _felt_ like it was his, and not having it with him had made him feel naked. He frowned at Sāmu. "He'll wake soon enough – we need to make a decision: kill or wipe clean?"

"Kill," Naruto said immediately.

He didn't want to follow this guy around indefinitely. They could just go through his crap excuse of an office back in that night club. He wanted to go back to Silken Heat, try some of the local "delicacies" and let these two rummage through Sāmu's personal effects. Then they had to leave Kumo. Unlike Sasuke, Naruto didn't want to stay in this hidden village any longer than necessary. He voiced all of this, and Sakura rolled her eyes.

"Figures you'd choose the option that led to getting laid."

"Well unlike some _rabbits_," Naruto snapped back, "I don't have the option of getting some whenever I want."

"Well I'm voting for wiping his memory," Sakura said, ignoring the blonde as he grumbled at this. "It makes more sense to tail him. What are the chances he just wrote down everything we need on a piece of paper, and put it in his office, along with the means to find his master?"

"The Raikage knows about us," Naruto said. "Am I the only one who cares about that?"

"Of course not, but you have to be rational about this–"

"I _am_ being rational! The longer we stay in this dump of a town, the higher the risk of being found out and caught!"

Sakura groaned at him and turned to face Sasuke, who was still staring at Sāmu. "What do you think Sasuke?"

He thought about that: this was the closest they'd come to actually being able to gather real time information about the snake Sannin. It was always weeks old reports, or third-hand information. It was never someone who could actually _contact_ Orochimaru. This wasn't something to be taken lightly.

On the other hand, he understood Naruto's position on this – heck, he agreed. The risk of sticking around in Kumo might not be worth it. They had Sāmu's cover name, they could go through his things, find other contacts, and then something else that might lead to the Sannin. A little detour was nothing compared to six years.

Sasuke was torn.

He fingered the ōdachi, almost lovingly and frowned again – deeper this time. His desire for revenge was what kept him going, and despite the occasional mishap and calculated risk, he wouldn't turn back the clock. Leaving Konoha had been a one way trip – there was no going back now. With that, he made up his mind.

"Sakura, wipe his memory."

Naruto groaned as the pinkette knelt in front of Sāmu, performed a few hand signs, and concentrated. Once she was done, Sasuke grabbed the owner of Silken Heat and hoisted him over his shoulder.

"Stay here," he told her, ignoring the immediate defiance on her face. "We'll take this in shifts, that way we attract less attention. Naruto and I will go first, together, than one of us will come back to switch with you."

Sakura sighed. "Fine, but why me?"

"Because I said so."

Naruto growled loudly as he followed the Uchiha. "Is she your girlfriend or property, teme?"

X X X

It had been several hours and Sakura was worried. She'd rested, read a book, cloud watched (through the surprisingly clear window in the bedroom), and reminisced on her Genin days in Konoha… there was only so much a girl could do on her own, even if she was feeling amorous.

She sighed. "Where are you guys?"

Even if Sāmu hadn't contacted the snake yet, Sasuke or Naruto should've found a way to let her know what was going on. Naruto would be most likely to contact her, or be the first to switch with her. She was still smarting over the way Sasuke told her to stay in the hotel room. The stench of bodily fluids was too much in Naruto's room, so she was currently lying flat on her back, on the bed she was sharing with Sasuke and just staring at the ceiling… _bored_. Why was she the one who had to stay here?

'_Is he angry with me?' _

Her dance routine in that night club Silken Heat, crossed her mind, and she groaned.

Sakura sat up quickly, making no noise as a sound startled her. Concealing her chakra instinctively, she climbed off the bed silently and moved toward the wall that separated her room from Naruto's. There was someone on the other side… no, a few someone's. They were ninja – she could detect the minute shift of their chakra, as though they'd never tried to suppress it before. Their voices were concerned as well, as they debated in low whispers, but she couldn't make out the words. They moved out of Naruto's room and back into the hallway. Sakura pulled away from the wall, swallowing heavily. They were right outside her door.

X X X

**A/N: And here I was, worrying this was going to be a short chap. ;)  
>Hmm… I think that's the perfect spot to end the chapter, ne? Brilliant. 'till next time, love and review! ^_^<strong>


	13. Cornered

**Author's Notes: Sorry for the late update. I hadn't intended to take so long, considering that cliff hanger. But it's all good now. ;) It's been raining on and off all day today, making me feel lazy. Funny that that's the moment I FINALLY sit down and finish this chapter, lol. ^_^ **

Chapter Thirteen. Cornered.

Kumogakure was situated in a range of mountains, earning the literal meaning for its name: Village Hidden by Clouds. Sakura wasn't afraid of heights, not really, but aside from the breath taking view, it left her feeling a little giddy. She had not anticipated the arrival of Kumogakure ninja to her door, so she'd only managed to grab her half empty bag before making a dash out the window. Her journal was in the bag, as were a number of clothes, but she was leaving behind other personal items too – a brooch from her grandmother on her father's side, her mother's opal pendant, her hitai-ate… not to mention her nebúkuro (sleeping bag).

That was a mistake. Leaving behind those items saved her life in the short term, but they had her scent on them, as well as Sasuke's, and probably Naruto's as well. It was an inexcusable mistake: one that was going to bite her in the ass.

Sakura followed the winding roads of Kumo and kept to the sides of buildings as she went, wondering what had happened to Sasuke and Naruto. They were late in switching shifts with her and instead of them, cloud ninja had come calling instead. She pulled the hood of her shirt out from under her jacket to cover her hair – dressed like a civilian, it was the quickest way to hide any identifying characteristics the ninja might already know about her. If Sāmu hadn't been lying, then the Raikage was looking for a pink haired Kunoichi, not a drab looking, sulking girl walking around on her own.

Of course, this only made her fears for Sasuke and Naruto heighten, especially at the sight of several ANBU squads passing nearby who sounded like they were rushing toward something. She glanced upward, toward the large blue building that housed the Raikage and turned away from it. The closer she had absentmindedly gotten to it, the more ninja there were. They were definitely looking for _someone_, and focusing their attention closest to the mountain peak on which the Raikage's Office Building was perched.

Did they think Kitsúne was in Kumo to assassinate A?

Sakura found it hard to believe anyone could be that stupid… except, it _did_ happen. She made her way closer to the civilian homes and found an empty house to hole up in temporarily while she figured out how to find her boys.

X X X

It was almost sundown by the time ANBU guards returned to the waiting room to retrieve the Konoha representatives. Kakashi Hatake did not consider himself to be a politically minded man by instinct, though he knew the 'dos and don'ts' of that world and what to expect when walking into a diplomatic arena – with familiar or unfamiliar relations. With enemies, the situation was never predictable, but with allies, he could at least fall back on the treaty, even if he didn't personally put much stock in it. He could work the system to suit the needs of the mission, carefully though, to not arouse distrust. In the end, he would still retain whatever protection the treaty offered for foreign Shinobi, as long as he didn't start attacking everyone in sight. The treaty was just words on a piece of paper after all.

Figure heads such as the Raikage however, needed to follow it to the letter; and he did, despite his normally brutish nature. But he could theoretically push that blurred line between friendship and all out war, yet such a move from someone so publically conspicuous without provocation was a dangerous game. It made Kakashi wonder, as he walked the hallways, alongside Hinata, Shino, Kiba, and Akamaru, what it was that the Raikage had been expecting with their arrival here. Did he know about Kitsúne? Did he have information on the assassination of the fire Daimyo's brother? Would he be angry at their presence so soon after these peculiar events had happened?

Kakashi barely remembered what the Raikage looked like. It wasn't like he'd been in a position to memorise the features of that buffed up gorilla the last time he was here. A was a beast in appearance, with yellowish-white hair, a small moustache and beard, and the copy ninja often wondered if his roguish appearance was the reason he allowed the more erotic night clubs in Kumo to stay in business, even though all other ninja villages were strict about seedy establishments. Silently, Kakashi decided this Kage was a man who had trouble wooing woman without throwing his weight (or money) around.

Once they were bade to enter, A immediately noticed the only girl in the leaf team – it was rumoured he had a fascination with the goings on of the Hyuuga clan.

Once the etiquette of introductions and protocol for discussing their official reason for being here were over, the Raikage got right down to business. He sat in his chair, while an assistant took notes and two nearby ninja – Kakashi remembered their names were Darui and C – watched the leaf ninja carefully: said Konoha ninja remained standing. Finally, after talking for ten minutes about their treaty and the promises Tsunade had made to A when she had been officially named as the fifth Hokage, the bulking man voiced his main concern.

"I have been authorised by the Lightning Daimyo to extend an agreement with the leaf in conjunction with your Feudal Lord. This new treaty will include your assistance in tracking down rogue ninja in the vicinity of Kumogakure."

"And in return?" Kakashi asked, knowing the Raikage was trying to avoid a two sided deal.

A growled, gritting his teeth as he spoke the words the Lightning Daimyo had demanded he say. "We will withdraw the troops currently stationed on your side of the border to the land of rivers."

"Boss?" Darui asked languidly.

A stared angrily at Kakashi, ignoring Darui's concerns. "I think it's about time the leaf village put all their cards on the table. We all have our theories on who Kitsúne is, and they've assassinated the brother of your daimyo. They've also been spotted near Kumo, so there's no doubt in my mind they're heading here. Who would you think they're coming here to kill, copy ninja?"

"If assassination is their plan," Kakashi said logically, "then there's no telling. The skills and abilities of Kitsúne are unknowns, so there's no way of telling what kind of opponent they could be after."

"Spoken like true Konoha dogs," C snarled.

"Enough," A snapped at his blonde companion, who hastily shut his mouth and lowered his eyes respectfully. The Raikage clenched his fists, looking ready to pulverize the unruffled copy ninja. He wanted to pull the Menpo off the man's lower face and pummel that uncaring attitude right off of him. But this was one of the rare occasions where he was willing to admit that force was out of the question.

"You came here without intent to harm," he stated, keeping his voice low, "so I will show you the same respect. But make no mistake, you _will_ help us track down Kitsúne, no matter who they turn out to be. I will send ANBU with you, along with C – an actual sensor should hasten the search."

"Is that really necessary?" C asked. He didn't trust Konoha ninja. And even if he wasn't allowed to attack them, did he really have to follow them?

"Yes," A said. "Split your team up Hatake – I'm sure you'll want someone from Konoha in whichever team it is that finds the criminals."

Kakashi nodded to his team. His gaze lingered minutely on Shino, whose response was a slight inclination of his head. He understood: Team Guy needed to be told of the situation. Wherever they were currently holding up, only Shino and his Kikaichū knew. And the easiest way to get this over and done with as quickly as possible was to split up, as the Raikage suggested. Hinata followed two Kumo ANBU, glancing back at her teammates one last time before they also found themselves partnered with unfamiliar and taciturn Shinobi of the hidden cloud village.

'_Divide and conquer.'_

X X X

Her time was up. Sakura left the civilian home once she realised its owners were back and was forced out of the area when a Shinobi patrol came close to her. She couldn't risk being found, but it was grating on her nerves, trying to figure out what to do now.

Then she realised: she was looking for the wrong trail. Instead of trying to find Sasuke and Naruto, she should've been looking for that informant of Orochimaru's, Sāmu. There was one place she knew that he would return to and that was the night club, Silken Heat. But this time, she had no intention of going in; keeping her eyes peeled for where Sasuke and Naruto might be lurking as they watched their target, she kept her hands in her pockets, shifting the bag on her shoulder uncomfortably. A pang of grief at the loss of the rest of her stuff cut at her, but there was nothing she could do about that, for now.

Sakura paused at the feel of familiar chakra. Before today, she would never have given this chakra the time of day. The Kumogakure ninja who had first gone to Naruto's empty room (she wasn't sure _why_) before knocking down hers, were nearby. She didn't hasten her pace – she couldn't without drawing attention to herself. The crowds were thinning and she tried to keep in the middle of them, but she knew something was wrong when several chakra signatures began converging on her position.

With nothing else left to try, Sakura ducked into an alley, created a shadow clone, and then waited as the replica of herself darted toward the nearest rooftop.

A feminine voice rang out. "I saw her, she went that way, hurry!"

The Kumo ninja searching only feet away from the real Sakura wasted no time in hurrying away and Sakura breathed a sigh of relief. Whoever that woman had been, she'd fallen for the trap and led the cloud ninja away. It was getting late again and she still hadn't seen any sign of Sasuke or Naruto. The idea that the Raikage had found them was looking more and more possible.

'_Kami, please let them be okay.'_

She went rigid, sensing chakra nearby again, her eyes going wide as she realised the owner of the feminine voice hadn't moved away with the others… she wasn't a civilian. She strode toward the slip of darkness between the two buildings and moved the crate out of the way. Sakura stared at her, stunned.

Two pearl eyes stared at her, not remotely surprised to see her.

Sakura however, was shocked. "Hinata?"

X X X

**A/N:  
>Oh, I love it. A whole chapter without Sasuke or Naruto… somehow that felt oddly <strong>_**right**_** to me. Well, whatever. Next up, let's see how many Kumo ninja they can piss off, shall we? ;) 'till next time, love and review! ^_^**


	14. Disobeying Orders

**Three's A Crowd**  
>Chapter Fourteen. Disobeying Orders.<p>

–

"Hinata?"

It was funny, the things that stuck out the most in her memory. Looking back, she remembered being scared, running from her hotel room when those cloud ninja came for her. Her thoughts lingered on her own safety and her belongings... eventually drifting to Sasuke and Naruto. Sakura wasn't a selfish person, but hadn't realised that her belongings shouldn't have been a priority at that moment. Her journal was important to her, so she left it in her bag at all times, in case she needed a quick getaway, but she hadn't thought twice about unpacking some of her other belongings in that hotel room.

She should've known better.

Sakura stared up into lavender eyes, wondering if she had left something behind _again_.

"It's okay," Hinata said softly. "I'm not here to attack you Sakura."

It took Sakura a moment to realise the Hyuuga was staring at her strangely, like she'd never seen her like before. The pinkette remembered how shy Hinata had been at the academy, to the point of disappearing into the background. Her demeanour was only offset by her looks, so that no matter how quiet she became, there were always boys who thought she was cute, not to mention a few envious girls – it was only the jealous kids (mostly civilian) that ever caused her any problems.

"Where are Naruto and Sasuke?"

Sakura blinked heavily, accommodating slowly to the circumstance of having Hinata Hyuuga staring pleasantly down at her. "Huh?"

Hinata smiled. "I'm sorry if I startled you, but you need to get Naruto and Sasuke and leave Kumo. I can't help you like that again – they'd never believe me a second time."

Sakura realised she had stumbled backwards and slid down the wall behind her at Hinata's approach; she trembled, standing up with effort. "Long time no see, Hinata."

At least her voice was confident.

"Not since the Chunin exams, right?"

"Yeah, sorry about that."

Hinata just shrugged. "You were just trying to help me."

"Like you are now, right?"

"Yes. You should go." Hinata spun around as she sensed a nearby, unfamiliar chakra. "What..."

"That was Sasuke," Sakura said. She moved away from Hinata, darting between buildings, and it was only as she spotted the head of raven hair that she realised Hinata was following her. "You don't need to come."

"I'll stay out of sight of the Kumo nin," Hinata said, "but I want to make sure Nar... I mean, you all are alright."

Sakura glanced back at her, nodded, and then darted into the small area in front of her. Sasuke and Naruto were fighting six Kumogakure ninja wearing the typical cloud Chunin and Jounin uniforms of a beltline sash and single strap flak jacket with distinctive variations.

There were no time for pleasantries, as Sakura jumped into the back to back formation Sasuke and Naruto had going on, earning a grunt of approval from the Uchiha. They were as glad to see her as she was to see them.

"Don't kill any of them," Sakura whispered to them. "I'll explain later."

Steel clashed as her companions gave their own indications of agreement. Sakura slammed her fist into an oncoming, blonde Jounin who was wearing an unusual high collared shirt and knocked him out. It wasn't easy, but she recognised the beginning of a Lightning Release technique and moved in close, interrupting the attack with a kunai to his arm before he could complete the hand signs. His cleaver sword came out to play then, but she was better against opponents wielding steel than ninjutsu.

Cloud ninja were well known for both Lightning Release techniques, and the use of swords over kunai was more common than not.

Once the fighting was over, Sakura exhaled deeply, realising she'd been holding her breath the entire time. But before she could fully reclaim her senses, Sasuke grabbed her roughly and pulled her to him; her eyes widened at the gentleness of his kiss.

Naruto chuckled, looking over the fallen cloud ninja to make sure they were all breathing. "He couldn't stop worrying about you, _Saku_." He stood up straight, his head cocking to the side. "What was that?"

Sakura reluctantly pulled out of Sasuke's kiss, remembering about Hinata. But the strange fluctuation of chakra they'd all sensed was gone a moment later: Hinata had disappeared.

X X X

The sun had fully set now, and it was only a few minutes after the scuffle... weird.

Sakura followed her boys closely, disappointed. She had wanted to ask Hinata what she was doing in Kumogakure, why she'd helped her, and what was going on with the Raikage. Sāmu, the spy for Orochimaru in the hidden cloud village, hadn't been very forthcoming with the details.

But she needn't have worried.

A few minutes later, they'd run into a patrol, darting out of the way just in time, but boxed in. A familiar voice came from behind Sakura, and she smiled at the sound.

"This way."

Sakura nodded to her, darting out of the alley and into another. Confused, Sasuke and Naruto followed. A few minutes later, they found themselves in an area on the outer rim of the village.

"Hinata?" Naruto, being the knucklehead he was, was the last to realise who had been leading them away from the patrols. Cerulean blue orbs locked onto the pupil-less lavender eyes of the Hyuuga. "What are _you_ doing here?"

"It's alright Naruto," Sakura hushed him. He was loud by nature. "She helped me out before I found you."

Sasuke however, was frowning at Hinata. "We can't trust her," he said.

"Teme!" Naruto whispered hoarsely. "She saved Sakura, and came to help _us_! I don't think–"

"But that's just the thing," Sakura said. She trusted Hinata... mildly, but she needed answers. "You're disobeying direct orders and aiding and abetting known criminals. That will only hurt Konoha – are you sure that's what you want to be doing?"

Hinata shook her head. "I'm not disobeying my Hokage." She smiled at their confused faces. "Before my team left Konoha, Lady Tsunade told us to co-operate with the Raikage, but she also gave us another order that was to supersede that one – as long as it posed us no danger. She knows who you are, Kitsúne."

"Wait," Naruto interjected. "I have a more important question than Sakura: who's this Tsunade?"

"Baka!" Sakura hit him over the head. "She's the Hokage. Don't ask stupid questions."

"How does she know who we are?" Sasuke asked, suspicion lacing his tone.

"I don't know: more than likely, she put two and two together. It doesn't matter." Hinata ignored his tone and took in Naruto's form as she continued. "The Lady Hokage wishes to deal with you on her terms, not the Raikage's."

"So you're helping us only to serve us up to a different executioner?" Sasuke growled.

"No, you misunderstand," Hinata said, holding up her hands as though in surrender. "I'm not here to escort you to Tsunade – not really. I want to help you."

"That still sounds like you're disobeying Tsunade," Sakura said.

Hinata sighed. "If you're found here, you'll be killed. But if you leave and return to fire country, you'll have a chance. Isn't that better? You're still Konoha ninja: at least, you are to those you left behind."

Naruto jumped forward and embraced her. "Thank you Hinata-chan!"

Sakura giggled. "Okay, we'll go. Thanks Hinata."

She turned to glare at Sasuke, who relented and nodded his head curtly to the Hyuuga. Naruto was still holding onto her, and she felt the strange heat coiling in her body that she used to get when he did that years ago. She'd always had a crush on him, but had not realised until right now, just how _much_ he hadn't changed... and that she liked him, right.

Sakura pried him off of her when it was clear the idiot was enjoying hugging Hinata _too_ much. "Time and place, baka."

Hinata smiled sheepishly, trying to compose herself. "H-head to the base of these m-mountains – that's a path free of surveillance: a blind spot if you will. One of the Raikage's men is a Sensor, so be c-careful."

"A Sensor?" Naruto asked, tilting his head and frowning. "Is that some kind of jutsu or ramen flavour?"

Hinata giggled at Naruto. "You don't know what it is?"

"The dobe doesn't know what _anything_ is," Sasuke said.

"Oi! Shut up teme!"

"You really should keep your voice down," Sakura snapped. "Or at least put a muzzle on that gob of yours."

Naruto just rubbed his head. "Thanks Hinata-chan. I hope you don't get into any trouble."

She smiled back. "I won't. Be safe Naruto."

"I should knock you unconscious," Sasuke said. "So that they don't think you just wandered off on your own. It won't hurt, I promise."

Hinata didn't doubt he wasn't trying to hurt her, but Sakura and Naruto looked dubious. But she nodded, dismissing their concern. "Thank you."

"No," Sakura said, embracing the girl. "Thank _you_."

Sasuke activated his Sharingan and Sakura caught the Hyuuga, lying her down gently. "She'll be okay, right?"

He nodded, took her hand, and walked away, without looking back. After a moment's hesitation, Naruto followed, but once they reached the blind spot, he paused, looked back toward Hinata's unconscious body, and sighed wistfully.

X X X

Hinata found her teammates shortly after a Kumo ninja happened upon her unconscious form and woke her up. She thought for a moment she'd dreamt the whole thing, that Naruto hadn't _really_ been in Kumo, that he hadn't _really_ hugged her, and she was feeling worry over his welfare for nothing. The strange look on her face helped sell her story of being ambushed to the cloud Chunin that found her, and a few minutes later, she found herself face to face with Kakashi Hatake, Shino Aburame, Kiba Inuzuka, and Akamaru. Kakashi was the one who spoke, staring at her as though he could read her mind.

"What did you see Hinata?"

She shook her head. "It was nothing."

Kakashi's eye narrowed slightly, but she met his gaze and held it. In the end, he only smiled and moved away to a nearby cloud ninja who was getting twitchy: they needed to report back to the Raikage.

Sighing, Hinata turned to stare at the last place she'd seen Kitsúne. Naruto had definitely grown since the last time she'd seen him, and despite Sasuke's suspicions about the Hyuuga, Hinata had only wanted to help. She realised what was at stake – she wasn't stupid. But her instincts had told her they didn't mean Kumogakure any more harm than they intended Konoha. It also aided her decision to help them that she still felt something for Naruto after all these years. She didn't want to see him hurt. She would've done it with or without the Hokage's orders.

And that was another thing Sasuke clearly didn't understand: self sacrifice.

X X X

**A/N: *sighs* Poor Hinata. She just wanted to help, and she got the fifth degree. ;P Anyway, now that that's done, I'm hungry. And, 'till next time, love and review! ^_^**


	15. The Summit

**Author's Notes: Late again, I know! :)  
>I lost everything I'd written on this fic – I prefer writing a lot of things on paper, so I usually end up with a mix of handwritten stuff and typed. The handwritten stuff on later chapters up and disappeared on me, the friggin shites, so I had to write a lot of that from scratch again. And now I've got a real estate inspection. *shudders* :P I hate caramel, even when it's in chocolate. Anyway, read, love and review! ^_^ <strong>

–

**Three's A Crowd**  
>Chapter Fifteen. The Summit.<p>

–

Hinata Hyuuga was bored and the meeting had been going on for over an hour. The Raikage wasn't happy with the state of affairs – the lightning daimyo wanted to know what was happening to capture Kitsúne, and the fire daimyo kept trying to assure them they were leaving no stone unturned (as regally and pompously as he could without offending them – it was _his_ brother that was assassinated after all). Tsunade however, was rubbing her temples, and clearly bordering on a migraine as she listened to the incessant rabble.

Hinata felt sorry for her, having previously not relished the idea of having to stand politely and wait for the rabble to cease – it would be worse having to actually participate. This way, she occasionally found her mind drifting and her thoughts went to Naruto. She hadn't seen him, Sakura or Sasuke for a few days, and she was looking forward to meeting up with them again. They hadn't wanted to get her involved in their plans but in the end she wore them down – without help, they were sitting ducks for the hunter squads, especially the Kumo Shinobi, who were far more brutal about rogue ninja these days.

Hinata inwardly sighed at this, reminding herself to keep her expression from showing how _bored_ she really was.

Both Kages were flanked by two guards (Darui and C for A, and Hinata and Kakashi for Tsunade), and the feudal lords had brought an entourage each. There was no way anyone outside of those present knew exactly where they were – unlike with normal summits, they'd decided on the location at the last minute – so the chances of someone attacking was slim. If anyone did, it would indicate a mole, and that was a whole other can of worms.

"Okay, that's it," Tsunade snapped, interrupting Hinata's thought process. "I've already agreed to your terms and I demand recompense – yes, the chances of Kitsúne being from Konoha is considerable, but _no_, that does not make Konoha as guilty as them. Now would you lot _please_ stop bickering and come to some sort of amicable arrangement – you're giving me a headache."

X X X

The path to the summit was clear and they'd been travelling for days. They approached the Valley of the End without being seen, and proceeded on foot toward the prearranged meeting place. They weren't invited of course, being from neither Konohagakure or Kumogakure, but were skilful ninja in their own right. Spying on the summit was easy – at least for him.

"Gaara," Temari nudged him gently. "What do you see?"

"Yeah," Kankuro complained. "We can't see anything."

"You can't see what's right in front of your face," she snapped at him.

He opened his mouth to complain but Gaara cut him off. "Stop bickering."

Temari moved closer to him, barely shifting the tree branch they were perched on. "What do you see?"

"The meeting is still going," Gaara said evenly.

"And?" Kankuro asked

Gaara resisted the urge to throw the idiot out of the tree. "And, it's still going."

"That just means they haven't decided on what to do," Temari said, shifting again to get comfortable. "But it shouldn't take too much longer – they're always arguing over something and it never takes all day to sort it out."

Kankuro snorted. "Konoha's a push over."

"No, they're just easier to manoeuvre around when their interests don't clash."

"Same thing."

"It is _not_ the same thing Kankuro. Being a good ally isn't just about helping yourself to spoils – it's also about knowing when to compromise. Why do you think we're here – why father wants to destroy their alliance with Kumo?"

"Yeah, yeah," he grunted. "I still think the leaf is full of idiots."

Temari sighed and glanced at her youngest brother. "What do you think Gaara?"

"You both talk too much."

She rolled her eyes. "About the summit, I meant."

Gaara thought about that. If this alliance between cloud and leaf was as tenuous as their spies suggested, their mission would be easy – but either way, it needed to be broken. The fourth Kazekage refused to deal with Kumo, and Konoha was the strongest hidden village after all. This rogue group – Kitsúne – was their way in. After the assassination of the brother to the fire daimyo, everyone would be looking to kill these missing-nin, and from all reports, both Kumo and Konoha knew who they were but hadn't issued any public warrants.

Gaara was _very_ interested to find out their identities.

He was about to answer when his Third Eye showed him something. "The summit is over."

A few minutes later, the fire and lightning daimyos had left. The Raikage and Hokage exchanged a few words before A also left. Tsunade spoke in low tones to her two guards – Gaara recognised one as being from the Hyuuga clan, and the other as the famous copy ninja. He wasn't surprised by the fact that it hadn't been ANBU to accompany her or A – they had their preferences.

"Who do we follow?" Temari asked, as the leaf team set off, heading away from the clearing (and therefore south from the Valley of the End).

Gaara didn't answer, instead moving to track the leaf ninja. A normal Shinobi would give themselves away quickly when following one tracker ninja, not to mention two, but Gaara had never been caught out and he wasn't about to start now.

"Why the Konoha team?" Kankuro asked, and followed as Gaara pushed away from the tree they were standing on.

His brother ignored him and he groaned in exasperation.

"Here we go," Temari sighed, and shook her head as she brought up the rear of their line. A few seconds later, she caught up with Kankuro, and whispered to him. "Stop asking stupid questions."

Gaara kept his eyes intent on the path in front of them as his Third Eye maintained visual contact with the team. Most people who knew about it, believed he had to remain stationary while using this technique, but he didn't (he just needed to stay nearby).

Half a day from Konoha, the leaf team finally stopped and the Hyuuga had a quick discussion with her Hokage before leaving the clearing – it was obvious that both Tsunade and the copy ninja knew where she was going.

Temari frowned. "What do you think – is she going to _them_?"

Gaara nodded. "Stay here," he told his siblings, and followed the Hyuuga.

The girl was darting through the thicket, her face hidden a second later as she pulled up the hood on her jacket. He watched as she came to a clearing half an hour later and narrowed his eyes at the three ninja who greeted her – the grumpy looking one was clearly an Uchiha, the blonde had to be the leaf jinchuriki, and the pinkette their team mate. He'd heard all about the split of Team Seven from Konoha and wasn't surprised that they were Kitsúne – looking back at everything, it made a kind of strange sense.

Gaara followed the Hyuuga girl back to her Hokage fifteen minutes later and his siblings raised their eyebrows at him when he relayed what had happened.

"You know what this means?" Kankuro asked, though the answer was obvious. He did have a penchant for asking stupid questions.

Temari smirked as her brothers gave collected sighs. "The Hokage has no intention on delivering Kitsúne to her own feudal lord, let alone foreign Shinobi."

X X X

Lady Tsunade waved Kakashi and Hinata away as they arrived inside Konoha's gates and headed toward her office. Kakashi didn't seem fazed, flickering away as Hinata glanced at the guards in the check-in station. She offered Kotetsu and Izumo a small smile and headed toward the Hyuuga compound.

The Raikage scared her, especially since, more than once, she'd found his eyes surveying her during that summit. She'd only agreed to accompany Tsunade (the guard positions were volunteer ones, not orders) so that she could be the one to liaise with Kitsúne. The Hokage had been shocked upon Team Kakashi and Team Guy's return, to learn of Hinata aiding Kitsúne. Her theory about their identity was confirmed, but she was stunned that Hinata would take such a risk on her own. She wasn't weak – nowhere near as fragile as she used to _think_ of herself, let alone her father – but had never done anything like that before.

Hinata Hyuuga was not normally so unpredictable.

But it was an opportunity, and Hinata hadn't been reprimanded for it – Kakashi stated that he'd realised what she was up to and silently communicated his assent. It may not have been _completely_ true, but the Hyuuga was grateful for his support.

Hinata sighed in her musings, realising she wasn't alone. Neji was waiting for her. She smiled as he greeted her and used her Byakugan to make sure no-one else was nearby. He raised an elegant eyebrow at this, but didn't comment.

"Cousin," she said pleasantly. "I've asked you to meet me here because I need your help."

X X X

**A/N: Don't like the sand siblings? *pokes tongue* I love them – well, Gaara mostly – and writing them is FUN. ;)  
>I suppose I just had to get back into the mindset for this. It came out all in one go, unlike the last time when I tried to write this – which just amounted to me staring at the screen and trying to fight off the urge to play a video game instead, lol. Yes, I gave in to that urge. Better late than never I guess.<strong>

**Next chapter is ALL Kitsúne (well, 90-98%): 'till then, love and review! ^_^**


	16. The Last Night

**Author's Notes:  
>Okay, the feel of this chap is a little different, but fun I think. It's a filler too: the last of its kind, so enjoy it while you can. ^_^ <strong>

–

**Three's A Crowd**  
>Chapter Sixteen. The Last Night.<p>

–

There were rules in the Hyuuga household, whether you belonged to the main branch or lived in the Bunke wings of the complex – no-one was exempt from them. Hinata was expected to let her father know every time she left the village, and explain herself afterwards (not that he really cared). It was one of the few things that was more expected of the main branch – she had no idea _why_, but there it was.

And as it so happened, she needed to get away. She was still amazed by the fact that Kitsúne turned out to be Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke, but like the Hokage had said, the signs had been there for a long time. They couldn't hide their identity forever. Lady Tsunade was positive that the Raikage had also figured them out, but both sides were pretending otherwise. If this kept up, they'd end up at loggerheads and the alliance would crumble. While Tsunade hated dealing with A, it would be a blow to Konoha's resources and decades worth of joint missions – Kumogakure knew more about Konohagakure than any other hidden village.

Neji collected the scroll Hinata needed and she hugged him before leaving. He needed someone other than Tenten to embrace him every now and then because he seized up at her touch. Neji patted her back good naturedly but didn't relax until she pulled away.

"Thank you Nī-san," she said.

"Just be careful Hinata," he warned. "There are Kumo ninja staking out that area you're headed to."

"I know, but there are leaf ANBU there too. I'll be fine." He gave her a rare smile and she grinned back at him. "I'll see you tomorrow Nī-san, and tell you all about it."

He grimaced. "I would sooner wish to know how many children Tenten is planning on us having than…"

He drifted off, shuddering. Hinata just smiled and grabbed her travelling bag before telling her father she had an overnight delivery solo mission. As usual, he gave a small tiny jerk of his head to indicate he had heard her and she left, wondering if he would ever care that she was leaving.

X X X

It was just past sundown when Naruto greeted Hinata at the entrance to Otafuku town. It was as boisterous as ever – sometimes she wondered if they ever stopped celebrating _something_ – but it wasn't gambling and games that Hinata was excited to see. The blonde didn't look quite like himself, but her Byakugan saw through the henge to the whiskered face teenager underneath.

"Hinata-chan!" He hugged her with enthusiasm and then whispered in her ear. "Sakura and the teme are waiting in the inn."

She nodded and gave a small yelp of surprise when he pulled away enough to kiss her cheek. Naruto quickly grabbed her hand and propelled her through the sea of people. He was excited to see her too, gripping her hand a little tighter than necessary as they were jostled by the crowd. They ended up taking the normal entrance (he'd been tempted to just Shunshin straight into the room, but there were spies everywhere after all), and Naruto barged into Sasuke and Sakura's room – right next to his own.

"Idiot," Sasuke mumbled.

"You're lucky we weren't naked," Sakura said, and the Hyuuga blushed.

"Hi S-Sakura," Hinata stammered. "Sasuke."

"Sorry," Naruto said sheepishly.

Sasuke nodded his head in Hinata's direction, but his eyes were resting on the hand that was clasped to Naruto's.

"We need to sort things out," Sakura was saying, patting Sasuke gently on the arm to get his attention. "What did the Hokage say to you Hinata about getting the daimyo off our backs?"

"She wants to meet with you to tell you," the Hyuuga said. "I think it's the Raikage you need to worry about."

"It wasn't _his_ brother that died," Naruto said, confused.

Hinata noted the way Sakura's eyes darted to Sasuke and the aforementioned Uchiha lowered his eyes guiltily to the floor – that answered the "whodunit?" question in her head.

"Okay," Sakura said, nudging Naruto. "You two get out of here and rest. We'll talk more in the morning."

"_Gladly_," Naruto said happily.

That was how Hinata found herself, barely ten minutes later, sitting next to Naruto… on the bed, and with his arms wrapped around her. She managed to hold back blushing profusely as he stared thoughtfully at her.

Naruto remembered Hinata being a shy young thing. Right now however, she was looking at him with something mixed between longing and dread. She wanted to sleep with him, he could tell, but a part of her was terrified of what tomorrow would bring. He was a missing-nin, and although she knew he meant the leaf no harm, there was no future for them. A single tear ran down the side of her face as she leant in to kiss him. The way she caressed his face but otherwise kept her hands to herself, the way she trembled when he ran his fingers along the shape of her breasts through her jacket; he knew she had never done this before. She may have grown up and gotten stronger, but she was still so open and obvious to him. He could read her so easily.

'_What would it have been like if I'd never left Konoha?'_

For the first time, Naruto regretted leaving the leaf. He wanted to go back and undo his mistake, hold this beautiful woman in his arms and lay with her for the rest of his life. He pulled away gently, wiping at his own tears.

"Naruto-kun?" She wrinkled her face up, concerned.

"I'm sorry Hinata-chan," he sniffed. "I'm just an idiot. I should've stayed when Sasuke and Sakura wanted to leave Konoha. I hadn't wanted to, but they were the two most important people in my life and I wanted to be a part of what they were planning. I see now I should've stayed."

He licked his lips, brushing at her tears now. "I should've stayed, and gotten to know _you_ instead."

She smiled. "You can get to know me now, Naruto."

"But what happens tomorrow when you're expected back at Konoha?" He asked. "How can I expect you to just go back as if nothing ever happened between us? I can't ask you to wait for me. You need to move on."

Hinata thought about that, realising that she had pushed Naruto onto his back and was currently straddling him on the bed. She blushed at this, but tried to focus on what he had just said instead. She understood what he was talking about, but there was a greater concern, at least as far as she was concerned.

"I would regret it more if I leave now and never see you again," she said. "If we do this, and I go home and never see you, at least I can say I had you, if only for one night."

She didn't dare tell him that her father already had some suitors in mind for her – she was supposed to be engaged within the next twelve months and married on her next birthday following the announcement. She wasn't the Hyuuga heiress – that was still all Hanabi – but was still expected to be put on the marriage market.

Right now, it didn't matter.

Hinata made the first move.

She leant in to kiss him, shivering slightly as his hands moved to her waist before starting to explore her body. He reacted positively to her, and she had never felt so wanted in her life. But she was a virgin, and good _Kami_ she was going to feel it in the morning.

X X X

"Stop perving on them and come to bed," Sakura said.

Sasuke wasn't a voyeur, not really, but he was _very_ interested in whether or not Naruto and Hinata were going to–

"Come _on_," Sakura snapped. "Do I have to undress myself _again_?"

The raven haired man was torn for a moment, but then decided he'd wrangle what happened out of Naruto in the morning. He found himself strangely interested in what was going on, on the other side of that wall… but there was something more tantalising crawling into the hotel bed behind him.

Sakura was undoing the binds on her shirt, readying herself for bed (another luxury they hadn't been able to afford for awhile), when Sasuke turned away from the wall and raked his eyes over her body. She ignored his wandering eyes as her shirt fell to the floor and she got started on the small, short black and pink shorts she had been wearing lately. It hugged her figure, but didn't give the viewer an eyeful either. She had made it herself.

In her underwear, Sakura sighed deeply, as Sasuke stood rigid, watching the scene unfold before him. The corner of his mouth twitched at the sight of her perfect form.

She smirked at him as she scooted onto the bed. "Are you coming to bed, Sasuke-kun? We won't get any chances like this for awhile."

There were enemy ninja all throughout this region right now, but it was easier to avoid someone who had to make their presence known – Kitsúne had never been able to hide in plain sight before, and thanks to Hinata (and by extension, the Hokage), they could this night without worrying about being caught.

They had a plan, but for now, Sakura only cared about one thing: that Sasuke had started undressing himself, and was quickly and completely naked as he climbed onto the bed to hover over her. She giggled at his eagerness, her own eyes wandering over his body as his had done to hers.

"You've left nothing for me to tear away from _you_ Sasuke-kun."

He smirked, but said nothing as his hand trailed her face, moving down to her collar bone as he leant into kiss her. She opened her lips to him, her arms wrapping his neck and pulling him down to her as he climbed on top of her. She could tell he was in a hurry to get inside her, but _she_ wasn't in the mood to rush things. She slowed down the movement of his hands and shifted underneath him.

"Sasuke," she said, dropping the honorific to show him how annoyed she was, "slow down. We have all night."

He grunted, forcing himself to behave and she ran a hand through his hair, lovingly. "I know, Sasuke-kun, I _know_."

She never managed to fend off his impatience to take this slower – and good _Kami_ she was going to feel it in the morning.

X X X

**A/N: There, very lovely. ;)  
>Anyone seen that movie 'Space Jam'? The one with Michael Jordan and Bugs Bunny? Well I absolutely adore that scene where the Tasmanian Devil spins around the basketball court, cleaning it lickety-split. Anyway, what sticks out in my mind is how he said "lemony fresh" afterwards… first thought I had when deciding this chapter was going to basically be nothing than lemons (lime, lemon… whatever). So friggin hilarious. ;) 'till next time, love and review! ^_^<strong>


	17. Everything to Lose

**Three's A Crowd**  
>Chapter Seventeen. Everything to Lose.<p>

–

If there had ever any been birds nearby, something had killed them. Naruto wondered briefly if all inn keepers owned cats as he watched Hinata with fascination. She was waking up, and it was the most beautiful sight he'd ever seen. He wanted to tell her everything – from the day of Orochimaru's attack on the leaf to his own fears concerning both Sasuke and Sakura. She mumbled a sleepy "ohayou" and her eyes widened at the frown on his face. He kissed her softly and started to talk, but she cut him off.

Hinata shook her head. "You don't have to tell me, Naruto-kun."

"I want to," he said, gripping her tighter to his chest. "I need to."

She smiled and took his hand. "O-okay."

Naruto had never spoken the words before, not even when he talked with Sasuke and Sakura about what happened. The Uchiha clan had been put in its place when they tried to take over the clan, most of them killed the night an unseen figure slipped into the compound – what little that did survive died when Orochimaru attacked, using the bijuu (except for Sasuke of course, who had been with his team mates at the time). It had been a jinchuriki sure, but during the battle, Naruto had personally witnessed the ease with which he'd transformed, the grim determination in his eyes ‒ he had been complicit in the attack from the beginning.

Naruto told Hinata how, shortly after the enemy forces were driven out of Konoha, the host of the Rokubi had been killed by his own team mates to prevent the leaf from capturing him. The memory of that boy shuddering and convulsing was enough to turn Naruto's stomach at the time. But unlike Sasuke and Sakura, Naruto felt no anger toward the jinchuriki. And as it turned out, Hinata knew about the Kyuubi – she'd been told by Tsunade when the Hokage had agreed to let her act as the liaison to Kitsúne.

"They'll hate me," Naruto said, his eyes flickering over to the wall that separated him from his sleeping team mates.

"Why?" Hinata asked. "I don't think‒"

"It was _hard_," he interrupted, "growing up, not realising why people hated me. But that boy – the Rokubi host – he'd been abandoned by his village, and all but thrown to the wolves. It was no wonder he was so angry."

"How do you know he was?"

Naruto's eyes fell to his hands, remembering that they were entwined with hers. "I spoke to him, tried to get him to understand what he was doing was wrong."

"And he didn't listen?"

He gave her a wry smile. "He did – it was another reason they killed him. He stopped himself from wiping out the leaf."

"You saved everyone," Hinata realised. "But, why did you leave? You said last night it was to follow Sasuke and Sakura, b-but…" She bit her bottom lip, staring him in the face. "Maybe it was because of that boy – to find out where O-Orochimaru went, and stop him f-from doing that to anyone else ever again."

Naruto grinned. "I knew there was a reason I loved you… oh." He broke off when she blushed furiously.

"Y-you l-love me Naruto-kun?"

The truth was that it had just slipped out, but once he stopped and thought about it, Naruto was sure there was something there. He felt happy, lying next to her, comfortable opening up to her; his heart clenched at the thought that they would never see each other again. But he couldn't give her what she deserved. He needed to stop being selfish.

But, he had just said the words. Naruto couldn't bring himself to make the light in her eyes go out – she looked so happy, so hopeful. He grinned. "Of course!"

He just wished he could tell, from the hammering of his heart, whether he'd just made a horrible mistake.

X X X

It was still early when Hinata and Naruto filed into the room next to them; Sasuke gave her a strange look at the way she was practically beaming. Her thoughts circled the previous night, how she was still _sore_, and then moved to everything Naruto had told her this morning. She hoped he wasn't in for a nasty surprise if and when he told his friends about the Kyuubi.

"Okay," Sakura said, moving the conversation along – which had started as Naruto rousing on Sasuke for turning his weird looks at Hinata into a knowing smirk. "Let's get started, shall we?"

Hinata told them where the Hokage wanted to meet them, before remembering her conversation with Neji.

"Here," she said, handing a scroll over to Sakura. "Neji-niisan gave me this to give to you."

Sakura took it gingerly. "Me?"

"All of you," the Hyuuga said, noting the furrowed eyebrows of the Uchiha at this revelation. "But you have the better control over chakra Sakura-chan, and he suggested this after talking with the Hokage."

"What is it?" The pinkette asked, peering at it cautiously.

"A medical scroll."

"Huh?" Sakura's head snapped up to look at Hinata. "Why?"

"In case the plan doesn't go well and we won't be able to return to Konoha," Sasuke surmised, and the Hyuuga nodded to him.

"Didn't you two say you wanted to buy some supplies before we went?" Naruto asked pointedly.

"Yep," Sakura stuffed the scroll in her backpack. "Come on Sasuke-kun, let's give them their space." She smiled at Hinata. "Goodbye Hinata."

Sasuke gave Hinata one last, swift, calculating look before taking Sakura's hand and leaving the room, without looking back. Naruto offered them a small smile of gratitude before turning back to Hinata. She embraced him quickly, burying her face in his shoulder. "I'll miss you Naruto-kun."

"We'll see each other again."

But just in case, he swept her into his arms and smothered the startled Hyuuga. It was a farewell kiss, a goodbye hug and because it might be the last time he would hold her, Naruto took the time to make love to her again. There was no-one else around, they were behind closed doors, and he just couldn't help himself.

X X X

The weight of the previous weeks, and their last conversation with Hinata nagged at the pinkette. Kitsúne travelled in silence to the appointed area, arriving a day earlier than expected. The upcoming conversation with Lady Tsunade made her incredibly nervous, and she kept thinking about that scroll. Why would she just give it up like that? It didn't make sense.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the setting up of their camp less than fifteen minutes from the rendezvous site, and Sakura decided she'd worry about the scroll later. She tried to sleep next to Sasuke, but he rebuked her, taking the first watch instead and ignoring her. He was mad again, and that in and of itself was pissing _her_ off. They'd argued over this before, to no avail, so she just left him be.

Come morning, Naruto decided to scout out the meeting place, leaving Sakura with a still annoyed Uchiha.

"What is your problem?" She snapped, rubbing her eyes from lack of sleep – worrying over him always did that to her.

"Hn."

"Answer me Sasuke."

"Nothing is my problem: stop worrying."

"Is it me? Did I do something?" He didn't answer and Sakura clenched her fists, watching him pack his bag. "You don't… you don't love me, do you?"

Those were the scariest words for her to think, let alone put into words. They had sex, they clung to each other in their mutual need for comfort, and when it came down to it, they were more in tune with each other than either could boast to be with Naruto. But did that equate to love, really? Sasuke frowned at her, realising there was more to the tears rolling down her face than her fear of his true emotions.

"You don't think I love you enough to stay with you if this goes sideways."

It wasn't a question. Sasuke said the words, stunned by the implications behind them. He wasn't the type to open up to others, in fact the act itself required more effort from him than even the day he'd activated his Sharingan, so long ago now. It made him miss being a Konoha ninja.

Sakura stared at her hands, terrified by his words as well. He forced his muscles to relax and lifted Sakura's head, his fingers snaking under her chin.

"I love you," he said softly, her eyes widening. "I love you more than anything Sakura. I'm so sorry I've never told you that." The tears came faster as he pulled her close. "I _should_ have told you that."

"It's okay Sasuke," she half-sobbed into his chest, her arms wrapping around his waist – all her anger was now gone. "You don't have to."

"No, it's not – you deserve more than I've given you." He kissed the top of her head. "I promise I won't be selfish anymore."

Her head snapped up and a look of sheer panic crossed her features. "Wha‒"

"Oi, love birds!" Naruto called out, his obnoxious voice preceding his burst into the clearing. "Open your eyes – we have incoming!"

The Kumo ninja chasing the blonde knucklehead amounted to one Shinobi without a mask, and four with – as far as Sasuke was concerned, there was no reason to worry.

"Come here to die?" He asked, smirking at the blonde – he was obviously the leader.

"Nah," the man said. "We just came here for the nine tails."

Sakura glanced at Naruto as he twitched.

'_Nine tails?'_

"Whatever," Sasuke said, drawing his ōdachi, holding it so that the tip of the blade pointed straight at the man's throat. "You're no match for us."

The blonde cloud ninja sneered at him. "Spoken like true Konoha dogs."

Several of the ANBU darted in, positioning themselves between Sasuke and Naruto, effectively cutting them off from each other.

Sakura took a step backward as the one in front of her charged. He was smirking or grinning triumphantly behind that mask, she was sure of it. Sasuke glanced at her as she took the man out, bringing her kunai up and into his jaw. They would not underestimate her for being a girl with pink hair anymore. Twisting his ōdachi, he parried his own attacker, pushing the sword down; the momentum of his swing drove his weapon deep into the enemy's back.

But he knew it was just a distraction.

A flash of brilliant light blinded them and for a minute, Sakura thought a bomb had gone off. But she and Sasuke were thankfully unharmed. She spun around as the Kumogakure ninja advanced on them once again (there were so much more now), her eyes flickering as she noticed her blonde team mate. Sakura's eyes widened at the sight of him slammed against a nearby tree and in a pool of his own blood. Red chakra flowed from him freely.

'_What the hell is __that__?'_

The leader of the Kumo ninja grinned as Naruto started to convulse. Not realising immediately what was going on, Sasuke moved to stand back to back with her, ready to fight, and Sakura screamed out Naruto's name. They were killing him.

X X X

**A/N:  
>Okay, 3 more chapters left, making that 20 in total. Hopefully, over the course of the next week or two, this story will be finished. I've ignored it for long enough, and now I'm going to focus on it completely until it's done. 'till then, love and review! ^_^<strong>


	18. Into the Fire

**Author's Notes: Oh, how I hate the heat. Had a crap day, so sorry for the way this chapter has come out ‒ if it does indeed reflect my irritability. It reads fine enough to me, but I don't normally write when I'm in a bad mood, unless I don't mind being even weirder than usual. Which I wasn't, so enjoy. ^_^ **

–

**Three's A Crowd**  
>Chapter Eighteen. Into the Fire.<p>

–

The roaring wasn't coming from the Shinobi, but Sasuke could see it, plain as day. _'Kyuubi, Kyuubi… Naruto is the Kyuubi.'_

The thought repeated in his head like a mantra and he hadn't realised at first that his Sharingan had activated. Sasuke's eyes trained on Naruto and the sound of crunching bones preceded the stench of blood in the air. Sakura's screams weren't helping his concentration, and Sasuke tried to think, to figure out how to get past the dozen or so Kumo Shinobi blocking his path to his teammate.

He could feel the heat rising in his own body, the blood lust taking over and he trembled, not able to hide his anger.

What were they doing to him? Those weren't death throes.

The red chakra was receding now, like they'd plugged him with a stopper, and Sasuke turned to Sakura. He wanted to tell her he was sorry, that he didn't know what to do, but the expression on her face stopped him – she looked directly into Sasuke's eyes, horrified. His heart clenched and a knot was forming in his stomach. Sasuke growled at that, losing control of his chakra as those bright green eyes widened in fear.

Sakura watched, terrified, as the tomoe of Sasuke's Sharingan spun, shifting, dividing, and moved faster than she had thought possible. He had worked hard, earning that second tomoe; right now, it was splitting into three. He turned away from her, and she closed her eyes to the sound of the first screams. Black fire engulfed them, leaving Naruto untouched, and the smell of burnt flesh reached him as he tried to fight the deep seeded desire to burn down everything around him.

The power was so intense and Sasuke couldn't maintain it at this level – not yet. He closed his eyes, trying to will it away, and the air around him began to cool down. This fire was familiar to him: he knew what it was, now staring into the dying cinders that was once the Kumogakure ninja. It was Amaterasu – a Dōjutsu he'd only ever seen Itachi activate before ‒ he felt excited at this, despite the circumstance.

It was a few seconds before the extent of what he'd done finally dawned on him, but he couldn't bring himself to care, having blocked out the screams of the men before him. Their charred bodies meant nothing to him, but the pinkette next to him was shaking like a leaf.

Sakura's eyes snapped open at the touch of his cold fingers on her arm.

"Sakura…" He wasn't sure what to say, suddenly worried he'd just overdone it.

She inhaled deeply, nodding to him but unable to smile. "Naruto…"

She ran over to the blonde, avoiding stepping on the Shinobi on the forest floor, and pulled him into her lap as he groaned. His eyes were closed and his pulse erratic – she ignored the fact that she now had his blood on her and kissed his forehead.

"Oh Naruto," Sakura whispered. _'You should have told us.'_

But, on some level at least, she understood why he'd kept this quiet. The villagers of the hidden leaf had treated him like he had the plague his entire life, and his two best friends were too angry at another jinchuriki to give him any hope they'd still love him if they knew.

"We _do_ love you," she cooed in his ear, hoping he could hear her.

Crying, Sakura held Naruto to her chest, grateful for the soft sound of his heartbeat. She kissed the crown of his head. Sasuke watched her quietly, wishing there was something more he could do to help. Even though he was still alive, the blonde was fading fast; he didn't need to be a medic to know that his pale, gaunt skin meant he'd lost a lot of blood. He didn't want to see this. He didn't want to watch his best friend die, and he was helpless to stop it. Sasuke growled softly, feeling the blood rise in him again.

Sakura continued to hold Naruto, hugging his shivering, frail body with hers protectively. She didn't know what else to do. She hadn't even looked over the medical scroll Tsunade had insisted she have. Up until now, skill _and_ luck had kept them alive; they'd never needed anything more than seeking refuge in a village and claiming victimisation from rogue ninja or bandits, to allay suspicions.

They needed outside help, but right now, Naruto couldn't be moved: it would likely kill him. Sasuke placed a hand on her shoulder and for a moment, Sakura thought he would drag her away from Naruto. The look on his face was almost feral. But his eyes, while still red and glaring, were directed outward. He was barely able to stand up under his own power as he kept his eyes away from hers.

She realised what he was seeing. "Someone else is coming."

X X X

"Don't worry," Sasuke said, relaxing almost immediately; his eyes trained on the thicket of the trees. "I can see her from here."

Sakura frowned up at him. "Her?"

He nodded but didn't say anything, instead relaxing his stance and deactivating his Sharingan.

"Hinata…"

Hinata burst into the clearing, looking startled as she took in the sight of the mangled and charred bodies on the forest floor. Her eyes swept over them, not really taking them in, before they rested on Kitsúne. The Hyuuga was alone, which surprised them.

"Why are you here alone?" Sasuke asked, suspicious.

But Hinata ignored him, her eyes widening as she full appraised Naruto's condition. She fell forward, onto her knees and inhaled sharply.

"He's dying," Sakura sniffed, still holding Naruto like he was precious china.

"Don't give up on him just yet Sakura-chan."

Sakura jerked slightly. "What are you talking about?"

"I know a little about medical ninjutsu."

"You can save him?" Sasuke asked.

"I can _try_ stabilizing him," she said, "but there are proper medics with the leaf ninja group accompanying the Hokage – they shouldn't be too far away."

She placed her hands on Naruto's chest as Sakura watched her work.

"Where _is_ your team?" Sakura asked.

"We ran into some cloud ninja," Hinata said, "and the Hokage sent me ahead to make sure you were all alright."

Sasuke reactivated his Sharingan and looked around. "They're coming."

Sakura frowned. "Which ones?"

"Cloud."

"He can't be moved," Hinata said, answering Sakura's worried expression with one of her own as she finished working on Naruto; she kept her hands on him, not wanting to let go. "Not yet – I could only heal his surface wounds. He needs a proper medical ninja or he won't…" She trailed off, her eyes on the blonde still being cradled by Sakura.

"The group coming this way is huge," Sasuke said. "And there's another one from the opposite direction. If they get here before the leaf team, they'll target Naruto again and no amount of healing chakra will help this time."

Hinata looked up at him in surprise. "They were targeting Naruto-kun?"

"The Kyuubi," Sakura whispered.

"We can lead them away," Sasuke said. "Create a clone to look like Naruto to drawn them in, and I'll cast a genjutsu over this area. Hinata?"

"Hm?"

"Is there a Hyuuga in the leaf team?"

"Neji-niisan," she said, and then narrowed her eyes at him. He was going to make sure the genjutsu was one the Byakugan could see straight through. "Sasuke, if you can fool them, we should all stay inside the jutsu."

Sakura shook her head at Hinata. "They'll still wonder where we went – no, we need to draw them away."

"Then create three clones," Hinata said. "And‒"

"It's okay," Sasuke said softly. "It's better this way."

"You can't leave him behind," Hinata said, her voice strained. "_Please_."

"The clones will disperse after a short distance if we're not near them," he said. "And the leaf team is too far away to get here before they do."

Hinata activated her Byakugan, looking back the way she'd come. There were multiple chakra signals about four and a half minutes out, and they weren't leaf. Chances were they couldn't see Kitsúne from _their_ position, just yet. One of the dead bodies in the clearing belonged to C, the sensory right hand man of A; she had no idea what that meant for the alliance, but was sure it wouldn't be good.

"He has to go back with you," Sakura said softly, before Hinata could protest some more. It was a statement, not a question. If there was any hope that Naruto might live, he needed to return with Hinata, and she knew the Hokage would keep him alive. She wasn't going to argue the point with her, and Hinata knew it. She sighed, outvoted.

"Lady Tsunade is a wonderful Hokage," the Hyuuga said, shifting to take Sakura's place – gingerly manoeuvring Naruto's head into her lap as the pinkette shivered involuntarily. "She'll try to protect him."

"I hope so."

"I've done all I can, but if you are going to leave, you need to go, _now_. There's no time to wait for him to wake up so you can say goodbye."

Sakura threw her arms around Hinata. "Thank you Hinata. And take care of the idiot for us."

"They're about to come into range," Sasuke said, ever the pragmatist.

"What about you?" Hinata asked. "What if they find you?"

"They won't."

Sakura stood up shakily, feeling more confident as Sasuke stepped up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist. Sasuke created a clone, watched it turn into an exact duplicate of Naruto, and gripped Sakura tighter – in his own way, he was clinging to the only lifeline he had now. His Sharingan had evolved, so he found that the area manipulation genjutsu he'd created had evolved with it. He set it up, making it look to outside observers like this clearing was empty. Hinata had insisted at one point that Neji saw through the one he'd put up the last time they encountered Team Gai, so he was positive he would this time as well.

Sakura gave the Hyuuga a sad smile. "Tell Naruto we love him, please?"

Hinata nodded. "Contact me if you can."

She didn't think it was worth the risk if they tried to contact Naruto directly – he was going to be watched _very_ closely. Not to mention he was going to be royally pissed when he did wake up.

"That's a promise," Sakura said and even the Uchiha offered the Hyuuga a small smile of gratitude before they disappeared.

Hinata could feel a faint ghost-like chakra presence before it vanished completely, leaving no trace. She'd worried they might be caught, but it seemed their combined abilities made them stronger than she could've imagined. Naruto was the one she had to worry about now. She looked down at him, running a hand through the striking blonde hair, and kissing his forehead. He was still gaunt and pale, on death's door, but at least he'd survive long enough for when their help _did_ arrive.

She waited patiently, watching as the sun passed overhead, and it was almost sunset when the leaves rustled around her and she heard a few chosen curse words before the genjutsu lifted and she found herself surrounded.

X X X

**A/N: Can't wait for the next one ‒ these final chapters are actually amongst my favourites. ^_^**


	19. Take Me Home

**Author's Notes: Oh fluff and hope – how I've missed thee. It's a nice distraction from the chaos in my head. ^_^ **

–

**Three's A Crowd**  
>Chapter Nineteen. Take Me Home.<p>

–

His eyes flickered open, and for a moment, he was able to see her: his eyelids felt like they weighed a tonne, so he was forced to close them again. The vision had been blurry at best, but he'd recognise Hinata anywhere. She wasn't looking up at him, her face tilted toward the sky, but her hands were on his shoulders as she cradled him.

Where were Sakura and Sasuke?

He became aware of her breathing next – the subtle and controlled intake of air in synch with the gentle shift of her body that came with it. He couldn't remember a more intoxicating scent than hers ‒ nothing that calmed him so effectively. The pain in his body had eased and he let himself rest, knowing she would still be holding him when he woke up.

He drifted again, and in the darkness that surrounded him, he could've sworn he heard Sakura and Sasuke's voices before he woke up again. However once Naruto finally had the strength to keep his eyes open (albeit only as slits), they were nowhere to be seen. They were gone, Hinata was here, and suddenly, he was no longer alone with her. But Naruto didn't care if they were enemies or foes. All that mattered was that Sasuke and Sakura had somehow disappeared. The look on Hinata's face was sympathetic and again, it had a calming effect on him. It was suddenly so clear to him – where he was, where he was heading, and what needed to be done.

"Naruto?" Hinata asked, as the blurry shape of leaf ninja surrounded her.

He groaned, gripping her hand tightly. "Take me home."

X X X

Naruto had been back in the leaf for almost two weeks, watched by the ever-worried hounds that belonged to that rat, Danzou Shimura. Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane were also making things difficult – they had gone over the Hokage's head and gotten the daimyo to put Sasuke and Sakura in the bingo book. The man was still mourning his brother, so it was understandable; the elderly advisors however, had done it to spite Tsunade. She hadn't let them (or Danzou for that matter) in on her plan to bring Kitsúne back, knowing they'd prefer to strengthen the alliance with Kumo. However, they couldn't prove she had taken matters into her own hands, so this was their way of making her pay, as it were.

Like it was _her_ that suffered from this.

Naruto on the other hand, they wouldn't be incarcerating. Thankfully, the daimyo had courteously taken Tsunade's side on that front. He wasn't without mercy it would seem. But Naruto was still under suspicion and had a difficult time ahead of him if he wanted to win back the trust of the village – not that many outside the stupid elders had voiced any concern about him now freely wandering the village. He was followed everywhere by ANBU ‒ the minimum time for this, according to standard protocol was a month, so he'd just have to deal with it.

Tsunade had more important things to worry about however, than the knucklehead. The Raikage had ruined their alliance. Because he'd been caught red handed, he couldn't justify going to war – the lightning daimyo wouldn't funnel resources into it if it was just to satiate his ego. There was still talk of reigniting that alliance, for Konoha's sake, but the Hokage wasn't going to hold her breath on that one.

Security procedures were reorganised, and all squads on missions outside the village (the ones A knew about) had been recalled back to Konoha. This was going to put a dent on their income with surrounding countries, in the short term, but it couldn't be helped.

And there was also the issue of the three ninja standing in front of her. Tsunade was sitting forward in her chair, leaning on the desk and peering at the sand siblings. In the wake of A's shame, the Kazekage had contacted her with an offer she couldn't refuse. They wanted an alliance, and since they had a bad relationship with cloud, she supposed they figured the leaf would be willing. The daimyo wanted them to patch things up with cloud, using the Raikage's attempts to undermine them to gain a more political stronghold on a new alliance. But Tsunade had no intention of going back down that road.

Shizune was the only one in the room that looked annoyed. "Are you really willing to turn your back on a stronger alliance with cloud just to spite the Raikage?" She asked her Hokage.

Tsunade glanced at her; they needed another alliance like this, Shizune should know this. She turned to stare at the sand ninja. "Yes."

"We wouldn't offer this lightly," Temari insisted. "But no matter what happens between you and your daimyo, we will support you Lady Tsunade. Kazekage-sama has agreed to sign on the dotted line in return for your alliance with Kumo ninja dissolving."

"Who knows," Kankuro said, when Tsunade mulled on this longer than necessary. "Maybe one day, all five nations will actually be at peace, and with no intent on war."

Tsunade knew the alliance with Kumo had been idiotic from the beginning, but she lamented over the loss of it nonetheless – in its high points, it had served the leaf well. She sighed. And she couldn't blame Kitsúne for it, not really – A had been working toward grabbing her throat and squeezing until she burst, for some time now. At least with the Kazekage on their side, she could still salvage some kind of alliance that would hopefully strengthen Konoha.

Not to mention Suna had the latest reports on Orochimaru's whereabouts.

If nothing else, this would at least help make the past six years seem worth it for Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto, and Tsunade had every intention of personally making her old team mate a corpse this time. The third had her respect, but she would forever be annoyed with him over his leniency when it came to the snake – no more.

"That's something to work for," Tsunade agreed with the puppet master.

"Indeed," Gaara said evenly.

"Granny!"

Tsunade visibly winced. She was never going to get used to that grating voice. Kakashi Hatake followed Naruto Uzumaki into her office as the blonde burst in. He looked angry.

"Naruto," Tsunade ground out. "Stop being a pain in my arse!"

Temari chuckled, drawing Naruto's attention, and he just frowned at her. Two more shadows had followed him in, and Naruto glanced over his shoulder at his entourage. The ANBU were keeping a close eye on him, but he didn't care about that. He wanted to know what that granny of a Hokage was doing about Sasuke and Sakura.

"I can't," she whispered knowing what he was going to say. "It's out of my hands Naruto."

They'd been having this argument since the moment he'd woken up in the hospital.

"Hokage-sama," Kakashi said, bowing slightly.

Ever since Naruto's return, the copy ninja had seemed a little happier to Tsunade.

"No," she said. "I won't talk about this anymore. I'm sorry you two, but Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno will remain in the bingo book until further notice – the daimyo will not budge on this, and there's nothing I can do."

Naruto scoffed. "Fine: I'll just have to become Hokage and take their names off myself."

Tsunade sighed, defeated. "You do that."

"You're a clown," Kankuro asked Naruto. "Ain't ya?"

"Hokage-sama," Gaara said, cutting off the knucklehead's retort. "If you would excuse us – the trip back to Suna is going to prove troublesome with the added security, and we would like to get a full night's rest."

"Of course," she said. "Shikamaru Nara is outside – he'll escort you."

"Thank-you Lady Tsunade."

They left and Tsunade smiled to herself. Somehow – she didn't know _how_ just yet – this alliance would prove to be far more beneficial than anything they'd had with Kumo.

A low growl brought her attention back to the annoyed Shinobi in front of her. Naruto's eyes looked feral, but he didn't start complaining again. His eyes had followed the sand ninja out of the room, the focus of his anger on the puppet master – he'd given Naruto an infuriating cackle on the way out.

"That guy…"

"Well, I'll be off," Kakashi said, disappearing a moment later.

Naruto didn't bother announcing his exit, storming out of the Hokage's office, and ignorant of the downward spiral she was considering taking because of him – a little gambling to soothe the nerves was just what the doctor ordered.

Naruto's concern over the rest of Kitsúne, his fear for their safety – he wasn't handling it well. As he half stomped his way through the crowds (the ANBU assigned to him keeping their distance as his anger seemed to frighten the most seasoned Shinobi – who knew he was the nine tails host), Naruto remembered that no trace had been found of either Sasuke or Sakura. He knew from experience that it meant they'd gotten away, but he wanted, no _needed_ proof. They hadn't contacted Hinata, and he was going to drive himself sick with worry.

Naruto calmed down as he approached the Hyuuga compound. The guards were uneasy at his arrival, but had their orders not to stop him. He'd convinced Neji to talk to Hiashi, and with the prodigy's help, he was now a welcomed visitor – as long as he didn't leave the path laid out for him. So he took the familiar hallways to Hinata's room and glared at his ANBU shadows until they silently agreed to give him some privacy.

They wouldn't be going too far anyhow.

Being around Hinata always calmed him, and the moment he knocked on the shoji door, he sensed her chakra shift. It made him smile.

"Naruto-kun," she said, tugging on him gently as he stepped over the threshold.

He closed the door and pulled her into his arms. "Granny can't do anything," he groaned out.

"N-Naruto-kun," she said. "You don't have to worry."

"I don't?"

She shook her head. "No, I don't think so. Sakura and Sasuke are very capable, and once it's safe, they _will_ contact me."

Naruto looked down at her. "How can you be so sure?"

"Because they love you," she said softly. "And they wouldn't want you to worry unnecessarily."

He grinned. "Yeah, you're right."

She snaked her arms around his waist as he held her tighter. "We'll see them again," she said. "I know it."

X X X

**A/N: I've always said Konoha and Suna were meant to be allies. It's just so… right, you know? :)  
>Sorry if anyone was expecting something more, like, I dunno, fireworks. These last two chapters are just wrapping things up – especially #20, which is actually an epilogue. 'till then, love and review! ^_^<strong>


	20. Epilogue

**Author's Notes: It's rather unfocused, but my intention with this last chapter was just to give it a feel good ending: cue the touchy feely things that normally make me wanna run and hide, but for some reason right now, are making me feel warm and fuzzy inside. So don't complain. ;P Anyway, I'm so happy today. Multiple reasons – not the least of which is no migraines! Yay! Always a good thing. Enjoy. ^_^ **

–

**Three's A Crowd**  
>Epilogue.<p>

–

The house was large enough, without holding the splendour of the Uchiha clan, but Sakura found it quaint, having never had anything lavish growing up anyway. She was fine with it, and had been for the past ten years. At that thought, she felt a pang of sadness for what she had left behind, and what she was going to be saying goodbye to very soon.

She was at a point in her life where the things she'd wanted as a teenager were finally coming to fruition. She'd learnt to drop her preconceived notions of time, of pain and of friendship; they were never quite the experiences people would have her believe. But she was content – nervous, exhilarated, but content.

Sakura shifted in her seat, her arms tightening comfortably around the sleeping infant resting against her chest.

The events that had led her to this place ‒ this wonderful nest in the middle of a dense forest just north-east of the land of tea ‒ plagued her mind every time change entered her life. She remembered how angry the Kumo ninja were, how they'd chased the trail she and Sasuke had purposefully laid for half a day before getting it through their thick skulls that it was just a distraction. And by the time the idiots had made it back to where Sasuke had killed their fellow Shinobi, the Hokage's group had already retrieved both Naruto and Hinata.

But Sasuke had insisted on not trying to contact Hinata for a month – to circumvent the standard protocol that would be put in place on Naruto (having him followed around the village by ANBU).

Sakura smiled at the twinge of orange peeking over the tops of the tree-line barely ten feet from the porch of her house ‒ and she had watched every sunrise since that fateful day. Not even Misaki could tire her out enough to make her miss it. Her four month old daughter fluttered awake at that thought; Misaki meant 'beautiful blossom', and Sakura had chosen it specifically (thankfully, she also had her pink hair…). Her only daughter had a name with a similar meaning to her own.

She'd dreamt of that from the first moment she knew she would be with Sasuke for the rest of her life.

For a few minutes, Misaki fussed before falling asleep again. Sakura was considering joining her when the sound of a particularly boisterous child racing through the house distracted her.

"Mummy! Mummy!" The small, raven haired boy came running out of the house, his dark eyes wide and excited. "I did it! I finally did it!"

Sakura resisted the urge to roll her eyes. She knew what he was talking about, and if she was right, he was lying again. Shou was five years old and the very image of his father – complete with that hairstyle that looked like a chicken's arse, except Shou thought it was funny rather than humiliating. His name meant "soar" or "fly", and he was often buoyant and lively, just like his namesake. In fact, he often reminded her of Naruto – though where he'd picked that up from, she was too scared to contemplate.

Sakura hushed him and Shou's head drooped as he finally noticed his baby sister, sleeping peacefully in his mother's arms.

"Sorry," he whispered.

"What did you finally do sweetheart?"

Shou grinned like a maniac. "I activated my Sharingan!"

It had taken him months to pronounce that sentence properly, and now that he was practically an expert, he wouldn't let it go. But of course, a five year old, no matter how talented, would not be able to activate their Sharingan – especially since Shou had never been in a fight before, other than training with his father. Sakura said the same thing she said every time he claimed to be a prodigy.

"That's lovely honey – show me."

He squirmed immediately, rubbing the soles of his little feet against the wooden floor and actually had the decency this time to blush. Sakura grinned at him.

"Come here," she said, waving him over.

Shou climbed onto her lap, being mindful of his sleeping sister, and let his mother embrace him. No matter how many times he cried wolf, she'd never rouse on him. She was just wondering if he'd finally give up the whole "playing Sharingan" once he actually _did_ activate it, when she sensed two chakras approaching – they were just short of the tree-line, and even Shou noticed them before they finally appeared.

Sakura smiled, remembering that while she had her daily tradition of watching the sunrise, Sasuke had eventually decided to substitute joining her with teaching their eldest to hunt. Her husband was carrying a boar, looking slightly put out, while the boy next to him (he was tall for a nine year old) was decidedly unimpressed.

"Ooh!" Shou shifted off of his mother's lap and ran up to his brother. "Did you kill it? Did you, did you?"

Isamu had long since stopped rolling his eyes at his brother's antics, calm as he always was; he placed a hand on Shou's head, patting his crown in a similar manner to the way Sakura had once seen Itachi poke Sasuke's forehead.

"Father showed me how he once killed a boar," Isamu said evenly, his gaze on his mother. "I think he was lying."

Sakura chuckled as Sasuke frowned at their oldest son. "You're right," she said. "It was your Oji-san."

Isamu sighed heavily. "I thought so." He moved toward Sakura hugging his mother formally before stepping back. "Good morning Okā-san."

Very much like Itachi Uchiha, Isamu was a quiet, respectful boy. He'd even grown out his hair and wore it back in a low pony tail, like his late uncle always did. Unlike his father, he used the appropriate suffix, both in and out of his family. Sasuke had always been considered quite rude in the fact that he _never_ did this, not even once. And unlike his younger brother, Isamu _had_ activated his Sharingan. He was so much like his uncle also, in the fact that he'd mastered it at the age of eight. If he'd been able to enter the Konoha Academy, he'd have been hailed as the same level of genius.

"Isamu," Sasuke said. "Take the boar around the back of the house."

"Yes father."

The boy quickly did as he was told, moving with the speed and agility of Shinobi twice his age – Shou let out a "woah! I wanna learn how to do that!" and then bounded back over to his mother and started playing with his sister's foot, trying to gently wake her up.

Sasuke sat down in the chair next to Sakura and took her offered hand. "Are they actually coming this time?"

Sakura nodded. "Today's the day."

Shou stopped pulling on Misaki's foot and gazed up at his mother. "Today's the day for what?"

X X X

Naruto and Hinata had never visited this neck of the woods before. The land of tea had been good to Kitsúne, and after their separation, had harboured Sakura and Sasuke without anyone realising (except for Hinata and Naruto). It felt right that they'd built their home on the stretch bordering the two countries.

As predicted, Naruto and Hinata arrived without a procession, even as highly connected as they were, and Hinata spent the day reminiscing with Sakura and informing Sasuke of all the political changes (he was more interested in that than his old friends) that were giving them another opportunity to return to Konoha. Meanwhile, Naruto was on guard the entire time, since Isamu saw him as a worthy sparring partner and would attack him without warning, while Shou treated him like a clown.

It was around lunch time that a pouting Naruto finally snapped. "Oi! I'll have you know I _am_ Hokage!"

Shou just laughed. "Yeah, right!"

Hinata giggled and sat down next to Sakura rather elegantly for a pregnant woman. "Like father like son – Shou thinks Naruto's a joke as well."

"Father doesn't think Naruto-San is a joke," Isamu said, not lifting his eyes from his book. "He merely believes him to be beneath him in skill."

"So does Shou," Sasuke added, not hiding the cheek in his voice.

"What is this?" Naruto wailed. "Pick on the Hokage day?"

"You gotta be Hokage first!" Shou screamed back.

The bickering continued… and Misaki slept peacefully through the entire thing.

X X X

The weeks had gone by quickly, with Sakura hearing from Hinata about her newborn baby boy, not to mention how the last of the disgruntled leaf council members had finally been deposed.

"It's time," Sasuke said. "Are you packed?"

Sakura nodded, lifting Misaki into the bjorn as she fussed. The last of their heavier belongings had already been carted away by movers and they were living on bare necessities. She was ready to finally face the music, so to speak. They'd returned to Konoha before today, having experienced the court trials that allowed their removal from the bingo book, not to mention S rank status. It had been completely erased from all documentation. But at the time, they hadn't been allowed to return permanently, with the council and the daimyo refusing to budge on that. Tsunade had stepped down from Hokage once she was sure Naruto would get the position, and this opened the way for Sasuke and Sakura to return, along with their children.

Konoha did not yet know what it was about to inherit – Sakura was excited at the prospect of seeing Isamu showing up all the academy students, not to mention prove more than a lot of the adults could handle. Shou of course, she was wary about – his tendency to disrupt others and lie about his abilities was going to be… interesting. But Sasuke assured her he'd spoken to him about this: "Uchiha do not brag to those beneath them."

It wasn't what she'd wanted, but it was all he was going to give.

Sakura hummed softly as they walked, making the already sleepy infant in her arms giggle before drifting off. Sasuke held her hand the entire time, Isamu spent the walk just reading (though his parents knew very well he was watching everything that was going on around him regardless), and Shou found himself utterly _fascinated_ by every inch of flora he laid his gleaming dark eyes on.

And Sakura wouldn't trade them for anything – not even being able to turn back time, and return to Konoha earlier. There were still lingering feelings of regret over leaving Naruto in the forest that day, and not being on the leaf squad that finally tracked down Orochimaru, but nothing compared to the family she had now.

The sight of Konoha made her nostalgic.

The faces that greeted them, the arms that embraced her; Sakura let go of her regret. She didn't have anything to be ashamed of. She shared a knowing smirk with Sasuke. They were finally home.

X X X

**A/N: Done, done and friggin done. ;)  
>If this fic has taught me nothing else, it's that I crave human affection more than I give myself credit for. How did I come to that conclusion? Hm… not telling. ;P<strong>

**Well anyway. Thank-you so much to everyone who's stuck with this. It made this worthwhile. *blows kiss* Mwa! ;)**


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